Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN) Posts Quarterly Earnings Results

Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN) posted its earnings results on Monday. The closed-end fund reported $0.59 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.60 by ($0.01), Briefing.com reports. The company had revenue of $2.21 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.70 billion. Franklin Resources had a return on equity of 10.60% and a net margin of 10.24%. The company’s revenue was up 11.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.84 EPS.

Franklin Resources Stock Performance

NYSE BEN opened at $20.95 on Wednesday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $20.21 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $21.96. The company has a quick ratio of 1.71, a current ratio of 1.71 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93. Franklin Resources has a 12-month low of $18.94 and a 12-month high of $30.32. The firm has a market cap of $10.96 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.85, a PEG ratio of 2.81 and a beta of 1.38.

Franklin Resources Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, October 11th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 30th were given a dividend of $0.31 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, September 30th. This represents a $1.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.92%. Franklin Resources’s payout ratio is 76.07%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Franklin Resources

In other news, CEO Jennifer M. Johnson bought 12,700 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 28th. The stock was bought at an average cost 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 in the company, valued at approximately $51,857,182. This trade represents a 0.00 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In other news, CEO Jennifer M. Johnson bought 12,700 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 28th. The stock was bought at an average cost 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 in the company, valued at approximately $51,857,182. This trade represents a 0.00 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Jennifer M. Johnson bought 18,900 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 23rd. The shares were purchased at an average price of $20.95 per share, with a total value of $395,955.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief executive officer now owns 216,900 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,544,055. This trade represents a 0.00 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders acquired 231,600 shares of company stock worth $4,537,637 and sold 24,024 shares worth $1,051,375. Company insiders own 24.13% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

BEN has been the topic of several recent research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on Franklin Resources from $22.00 to $21.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday. Evercore ISI decreased their price target on shares of Franklin Resources from $20.00 to $19.00 and set an “underperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, October 4th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of Franklin Resources from $19.00 to $19.50 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft decreased their price target on shares of Franklin Resources from $20.00 to $19.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their price target on shares of Franklin Resources from $23.75 to $21.25 and set a “sell” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, September 30th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and seven have issued a hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $20.20.

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.