Franklin Resources, Inc. $BEN Shares Sold by Keystone Financial Planning Inc.

Keystone Financial Planning Inc. lowered its position in shares of Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN) by 2.1% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 105,710 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock after selling 2,284 shares during the period. Franklin Resources accounts for approximately 0.8% of Keystone Financial Planning Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 24th largest position. Keystone Financial Planning Inc.’s holdings in Franklin Resources were worth $2,521,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Manchester Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Franklin Resources by 49.9% in the first quarter. Manchester Capital Management LLC now owns 1,668 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 555 shares in the last quarter. Signaturefd LLC boosted its stake in Franklin Resources by 39.4% in the first quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 2,592 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $50,000 after acquiring an additional 732 shares in the last quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group boosted its stake in Franklin Resources by 78.3% in the first quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 3,139 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $60,000 after acquiring an additional 1,378 shares in the last quarter. CX Institutional boosted its stake in Franklin Resources by 245.1% in the second quarter. CX Institutional now owns 3,379 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $81,000 after acquiring an additional 2,400 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Private Trust Co. NA boosted its stake in Franklin Resources by 79.8% in the first quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 3,802 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $73,000 after acquiring an additional 1,687 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 47.56% of the company’s stock.

Franklin Resources Trading Up 0.7%

NYSE BEN opened at $22.84 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $11.86 billion, a P/E ratio of 44.78, a P/E/G ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 1.50. Franklin Resources, Inc. has a 52-week low of $16.25 and a 52-week high of $26.08. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $24.02 and a 200 day moving average price of $22.84. The company has a quick ratio of 1.55, a current ratio of 1.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.94.

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

Franklin Resources Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, October 10th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 30th were issued a $0.32 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, September 30th. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.6%. Franklin Resources’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 250.98%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have issued reports on the stock. BMO Capital Markets assumed coverage on shares of Franklin Resources in a research note on Friday, October 3rd. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $26.00 price objective for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on shares of Franklin Resources from $22.00 to $29.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, August 4th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised shares of Franklin Resources from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $29.00 target price for the company in a report on Friday, June 27th. Evercore ISI reduced their target price on shares of Franklin Resources from $25.00 to $23.00 and set an “underperform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, October 9th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of Franklin Resources from $21.50 to $26.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, July 11th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and five have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Franklin Resources currently has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and a consensus price target of $23.83.

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.