Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN) Receives $23.58 Consensus Price Target from Brokerages

Shares of Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN) have been given a consensus recommendation of “Reduce” by the fourteen analysts that are presently covering the stock, Marketbeat reports. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. The average 1-year target price among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $23.5833.

BEN has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Cowen reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Franklin Resources in a report on Monday, June 16th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised shares of Franklin Resources from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $29.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Friday, June 27th. Zacks Research cut shares of Franklin Resources from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 20th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of Franklin Resources from $21.50 to $26.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, July 11th. Finally, Evercore ISI lifted their price objective on Franklin Resources from $24.00 to $25.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a research report on Monday, August 4th.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Manchester Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Franklin Resources by 49.9% in the 1st quarter. Manchester Capital Management LLC now owns 1,668 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 555 shares during the period. Whitener Capital Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Franklin Resources by 3.3% in the first quarter. Whitener Capital Management Inc. now owns 21,245 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $409,000 after acquiring an additional 688 shares in the last quarter. Wright Investors Service Inc. increased its position in Franklin Resources by 3.5% during the second quarter. Wright Investors Service Inc. now owns 20,968 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $500,000 after acquiring an additional 706 shares during the period. Gen Wealth Partners Inc raised its stake in Franklin Resources by 2.8% in the 1st quarter. Gen Wealth Partners Inc now owns 25,972 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $500,000 after purchasing an additional 718 shares in the last quarter. Finally, SBI Securities Co. Ltd. boosted its holdings in Franklin Resources by 8.3% in the 2nd quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. now owns 9,351 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $223,000 after purchasing an additional 718 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 47.56% of the company’s stock.

Franklin Resources Trading Down 2.5%

Shares of BEN stock opened at $22.55 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.55, a quick ratio of 1.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.94. The business’s 50 day moving average is $24.72 and its two-hundred day moving average is $22.40. Franklin Resources has a twelve month low of $16.25 and a twelve month high of $26.08. The company has a market capitalization of $11.71 billion, a P/E ratio of 44.21, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.34 and a beta of 1.51.

Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN) last issued its earnings results on Friday, August 1st. The closed-end fund reported $0.49 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.46 by $0.03. Franklin Resources had a return on equity of 8.76% and a net margin of 3.73%.The business had revenue of $2.06 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.38 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.60 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 2.2% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts forecast that Franklin Resources will post 2.16 EPS for the current year.

Franklin Resources Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 10th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 30th will be issued a dividend of $0.32 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 30th. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.7%. Franklin Resources’s payout ratio is 250.98%.

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.