Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN) Shares Sold by Weaver C. Barksdale & Associates Inc.

Weaver C. Barksdale & Associates Inc. lessened its stake in Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN) by 2.5% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 47,803 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock after selling 1,204 shares during the quarter. Weaver C. Barksdale & Associates Inc.’s holdings in Franklin Resources were worth $971,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Xponance Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Franklin Resources by 1.2% during the 4th quarter. Xponance Inc. now owns 43,687 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $886,000 after acquiring an additional 497 shares during the period. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC increased its position in Franklin Resources by 44.5% during the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 1,641 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 505 shares during the last quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. raised its stake in Franklin Resources by 0.8% during the third quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 69,585 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $1,402,000 after purchasing an additional 572 shares during the period. Hardy Reed LLC boosted its holdings in Franklin Resources by 3.7% in the 4th quarter. Hardy Reed LLC now owns 16,721 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $339,000 after purchasing an additional 591 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Anchor Investment Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Franklin Resources by 30.2% in the 3rd quarter. Anchor Investment Management LLC now owns 2,604 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $52,000 after buying an additional 604 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 47.56% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently commented on BEN shares. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on Franklin Resources from $18.00 to $19.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Friday, December 20th. Barclays increased their price target on Franklin Resources from $19.00 to $22.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on shares of Franklin Resources from $21.00 to $19.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 16th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of Franklin Resources from $20.50 to $24.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group raised shares of Franklin Resources from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and boosted their price target for the company from $21.00 to $22.00 in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and eight have issued a hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $20.86.

Franklin Resources Stock Performance

Shares of BEN opened at $20.01 on Wednesday. Franklin Resources, Inc. has a 1 year low of $18.83 and a 1 year high of $28.15. The stock has a market capitalization of $10.51 billion, a PE ratio of 30.79, a PEG ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 1.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89, a quick ratio of 1.66 and a current ratio of 1.66. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $20.14 and a 200-day simple moving average of $20.57.

Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 31st. The closed-end fund reported $0.59 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.56 by $0.03. Franklin Resources had a net margin of 4.32% and a return on equity of 9.45%. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.65 earnings per share. On average, analysts predict that Franklin Resources, Inc. will post 2.16 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, April 11th. Investors of record on Monday, March 31st will be paid a dividend of $0.32 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 31st. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.40%. Franklin Resources’s payout ratio is currently 196.92%.

Franklin Resources Company Profile

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.