Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN) Shares Sold by KBC Group NV

KBC Group NV lowered its position in Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN - Free Report) by 56.9% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 148,298 shares of the closed-end fund's stock after selling 196,063 shares during the quarter. KBC Group NV's holdings in Franklin Resources were worth $2,988,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of BEN. Power Corp of Canada raised its holdings in shares of Franklin Resources by 18,266.0% in the first quarter. Power Corp of Canada now owns 31,557,117 shares of the closed-end fund's stock worth $887,071,000 after buying an additional 31,385,293 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Franklin Resources by 11.1% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 35,889,477 shares of the closed-end fund's stock worth $1,008,853,000 after purchasing an additional 3,592,943 shares during the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Franklin Resources by 250.7% in the second quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 2,450,190 shares of the closed-end fund's stock valued at $54,664,000 after acquiring an additional 1,751,587 shares in the last quarter. Marshall Wace LLP lifted its stake in shares of Franklin Resources by 517.5% in the second quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 1,406,324 shares of the closed-end fund's stock worth $31,431,000 after buying an additional 1,178,594 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Millennium Management LLC grew its position in shares of Franklin Resources by 110.3% in the second quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 1,623,236 shares of the closed-end fund's stock valued at $36,279,000 after purchasing an additional 851,442 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 47.56% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

BEN has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their price target on Franklin Resources from $23.75 to $21.25 and set a "sell" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, September 30th. BMO Capital Markets cut their price target on Franklin Resources from $27.00 to $26.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, July 29th. Evercore ISI lowered their target price on shares of Franklin Resources from $20.00 to $19.00 and set an "underperform" rating for the company in a report on Friday, October 4th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut their price target on Franklin Resources from $20.00 to $19.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on Franklin Resources from $19.00 to $19.50 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and seven have given a hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $20.20.

Franklin Resources Stock Up 0.4 %

Shares of NYSE BEN traded up $0.09 on Monday, hitting $21.76. The company had a trading volume of 2,095,775 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,014,396. The company has a quick ratio of 1.71, a current ratio of 1.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92. Franklin Resources, Inc. has a 12-month low of $18.94 and a 12-month high of $30.32. The firm has a market capitalization of $11.40 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.20, a PEG ratio of 2.33 and a beta of 1.38. The business has a 50 day moving average of $20.47 and a two-hundred day moving average of $21.79.

Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, November 4th. The closed-end fund reported $0.59 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.60 by ($0.01). The firm had revenue of $2.21 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.70 billion. Franklin Resources had a net margin of 5.48% and a return on equity of 9.62%. The firm's revenue was up 11.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.84 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Franklin Resources, Inc. will post 2.4 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Franklin Resources Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, October 11th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 30th were paid a dividend of $0.31 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, September 30th. This represents a $1.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.70%. Franklin Resources's dividend payout ratio is presently 144.19%.

Insider Transactions at Franklin Resources

In related news, CEO Jennifer M. Johnson purchased 18,900 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 23rd. The stock was acquired at an average price of $20.95 per share, for a total transaction of $395,955.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief executive officer now owns 216,900 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,544,055. This represents a 9.55 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Franklin Resources Inc sold 7,657 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, October 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $43.90, for a total transaction of $336,142.30. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 65,862 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,891,341.80. This represents a 10.41 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have acquired 231,600 shares of company stock valued at $4,537,637 and have sold 24,024 shares valued at $1,051,375. Corporate insiders own 24.13% of the company's stock.

About Franklin Resources

Franklin Resources, Inc is a publicly owned asset management holding company. Through its subsidiaries, the firm provides its services to individuals, institutions, pension plans, trusts, and partnerships. It launches equity, fixed income, balanced, and multi-asset mutual funds through its subsidiaries.