Barclays Trims Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN) Target Price to $19.00

Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN) had its price objective dropped by research analysts at Barclays from $20.00 to $19.00 in a report released on Monday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an “underweight” rating on the closed-end fund’s stock. Barclays‘s price target would suggest a potential downside of 4.43% from the stock’s previous close.

A number of other brokerages have also commented on BEN. UBS Group dropped their price target on Franklin Resources from $25.00 to $24.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, July 10th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft dropped their price target on Franklin Resources from $24.00 to $23.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, July 29th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reissued an “underperform” rating and set a $23.00 price target on shares of Franklin Resources in a research note on Thursday, August 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on Franklin Resources from $20.00 to $19.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets dropped their price target on Franklin Resources from $27.00 to $26.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, July 29th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and six have issued a hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $22.33.

Franklin Resources Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:BEN traded down $0.23 during trading on Monday, hitting $19.88. 360,969 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,997,543. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93, a current ratio of 1.71 and a quick ratio of 1.71. Franklin Resources has a 52-week low of $18.94 and a 52-week high of $30.32. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $20.57 and its 200 day simple moving average is $22.67. The company has a market cap of $10.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.34, a PEG ratio of 2.29 and a beta of 1.39.

Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN) last released its earnings results on Friday, July 26th. The closed-end fund reported $0.60 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.57 by $0.03. Franklin Resources had a return on equity of 10.60% and a net margin of 10.24%. The firm had revenue of $2.12 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.09 billion. As a group, equities analysts predict that Franklin Resources will post 2.4 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other Franklin Resources news, major shareholder Charles B. Johnson purchased 100,000 shares of Franklin Resources stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 29th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $19.84 per share, for a total transaction of $1,984,000.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the insider now owns 89,208,192 shares in the company, valued at $1,769,890,529.28. This represents a 0.00 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In other Franklin Resources news, major shareholder Charles B. Johnson purchased 100,000 shares of Franklin Resources stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 29th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $19.84 per share, for a total transaction of $1,984,000.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the insider now owns 89,208,192 shares in the company, valued at $1,769,890,529.28. This represents a 0.00 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Jennifer M. Johnson purchased 12,700 shares of Franklin Resources stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 28th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $19.66 per share, for a total transaction of $249,682.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief executive officer now owns 2,637,700 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $51,857,182. This trade represents a 0.00 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders purchased 231,600 shares of company stock valued at $4,537,637 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 24.13% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Headlands Technologies LLC purchased a new position in Franklin Resources during the 1st quarter worth $32,000. Altshuler Shaham Ltd purchased a new position in Franklin Resources during the 2nd quarter worth $27,000. Sentry Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in Franklin Resources during the 2nd quarter worth $30,000. Matrix Trust Co purchased a new position in shares of Franklin Resources in the 3rd quarter valued at $29,000. Finally, Trust Co. of Vermont purchased a new position in shares of Franklin Resources in the 4th quarter valued at $45,000. 47.56% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.