Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN) Holdings Trimmed by DnB Asset Management AS

DnB Asset Management AS cut its holdings in Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN) by 76.4% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 54,311 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock after selling 176,207 shares during the quarter. DnB Asset Management AS’s holdings in Franklin Resources were worth $1,102,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Franklin Resources by 44.5% in the 4th 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 in the last quarter. Principal Securities Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Franklin Resources by 561.1% in the fourth quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 1,957 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $40,000 after buying an additional 1,661 shares in the last quarter. Anchor Investment Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Franklin Resources by 30.2% during the 3rd quarter. Anchor Investment Management LLC now owns 2,604 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $52,000 after acquiring an additional 604 shares during the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Franklin Resources by 29.4% during the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 2,677 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $54,000 after acquiring an additional 609 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Jones Financial Companies Lllp grew its holdings in shares of Franklin Resources by 64.1% in the 4th quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 2,937 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $60,000 after acquiring an additional 1,147 shares during the last quarter. 47.56% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

BEN has been the subject of several analyst reports. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on Franklin Resources from $18.00 to $19.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Friday, December 20th. Barclays raised their target price on shares of Franklin Resources from $19.00 to $22.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded 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 report on Monday, January 6th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective 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, JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on shares of Franklin Resources from $21.00 to $19.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and eight have issued a hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Franklin Resources currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $20.86.

Franklin Resources Trading Up 0.2 %

NYSE BEN opened at $19.29 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.66, a quick ratio of 1.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89. Franklin Resources, Inc. has a 1-year low of $18.74 and a 1-year high of $28.08. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $20.13 and its 200-day simple moving average is $20.57. The company has a market capitalization of $10.13 billion, a PE ratio of 29.68, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 1.42.

Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN) last issued its earnings results on Friday, January 31st. The closed-end fund reported $0.59 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.56 by $0.03. Franklin Resources had a return on equity of 9.45% and a net margin of 4.32%. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.65 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Franklin Resources, Inc. will post 2.16 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Franklin Resources Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 11th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be paid a $0.32 dividend. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.63%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 31st. Franklin Resources’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 196.92%.

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.