Franklin Resources, Inc. $BEN Shares Acquired by Azora Capital LP

Posted by Brenda Bartman on Jun 18th, 2026

Azora Capital LP lifted its holdings in shares of Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN – Free Report) by 78.8% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 5,796,575 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock after buying an additional 2,554,105 shares during the period. Franklin Resources makes up about 8.7% of Azora Capital LP’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 2nd largest holding. Azora Capital LP owned about 1.11% of Franklin Resources worth $138,480,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Franklin Resources by 65.4% during the fourth quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 1,268,912 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $30,314,000 after buying an additional 501,810 shares during the period. Abel Hall LLC boosted its position in shares of Franklin Resources by 10.9% during the fourth quarter. Abel Hall LLC now owns 24,145 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $577,000 after buying an additional 2,375 shares during the period. EFG International AG acquired a new stake in Franklin Resources in the fourth quarter worth approximately $114,000. Cetera Investment Advisers lifted its position in Franklin Resources by 6.8% in the fourth quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 151,630 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $3,622,000 after purchasing an additional 9,687 shares during the period. Finally, Trexquant Investment LP acquired a new stake in Franklin Resources in the fourth quarter worth approximately $6,958,000. 47.56% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Franklin Resources Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:BEN opened at $33.26 on Thursday. The company’s fifty day moving average is $29.84 and its two-hundred day moving average is $26.75. The company has a quick ratio of 1.87, a current ratio of 1.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.10. Franklin Resources, Inc. has a 12-month low of $21.10 and a 12-month high of $34.18. The company has a market cap of $17.28 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.39, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.87 and a beta of 1.55.

Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN – Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The closed-end fund reported $0.71 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.55 by $0.16. Franklin Resources had a net margin of 8.12% and a return on equity of 10.58%. The company had revenue of $1.75 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.70 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.47 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 8.7% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts expect that Franklin Resources, Inc. will post 2.74 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Franklin Resources Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 10th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 29th will be paid a dividend of $0.33 per share. This represents a $1.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 29th. Franklin Resources’s payout ratio is 100.76%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have weighed in on BEN. Barclays set a $31.00 target price on Franklin Resources and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 29th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their target price on Franklin Resources from $30.50 to $34.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 29th. Evercore restated an “underperform” rating and issued a $32.00 target price on shares of Franklin Resources in a research report on Monday, June 8th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Franklin Resources from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Sunday. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded Franklin Resources from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 3rd. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have given a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $30.00.

Read Our Latest Analysis on Franklin Resources

Franklin Resources Company Profile

(Free Report)

Franklin Resources, Inc, doing business as Franklin Templeton, is a global investment management organization that offers a wide range of asset management solutions to institutional and individual investors. The firm’s core focus is on delivering active portfolio management across equities, fixed income, multi-asset strategies and alternative investments. Franklin Templeton’s product lineup includes mutual funds, exchange-traded funds (ETFs), closed-end funds, separately managed accounts and sub-advisory services designed to meet varying risk-return objectives and income needs.

Founded in 1947 by Rupert H.