Alexander Randolph Advisory Inc. Has $1.83 Million Stake in Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN)

Alexander Randolph Advisory Inc. reduced its stake in shares of Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN) by 1.5% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 90,216 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock after selling 1,360 shares during the quarter. Franklin Resources makes up approximately 1.7% of Alexander Randolph Advisory Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 19th largest position. Alexander Randolph Advisory Inc.’s holdings in Franklin Resources were worth $1,830,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in BEN. Virtu Financial LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Franklin Resources during the 3rd quarter valued at $880,000. FORA Capital LLC acquired a new stake in Franklin Resources during the third quarter valued at $1,857,000. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its stake in Franklin Resources by 9.3% in the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 381,192 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $7,681,000 after purchasing an additional 32,490 shares in the last quarter. Swedbank AB increased its position in Franklin Resources by 78.3% in the 3rd quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 62,076 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $1,251,000 after purchasing an additional 27,259 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Franklin Resources by 44.7% during the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,998,574 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $60,421,000 after purchasing an additional 925,590 shares in the last quarter. 47.56% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Franklin Resources Price Performance

Franklin Resources stock opened at $20.50 on Friday. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $20.30 and a 200 day simple moving average of $20.74. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89, a current ratio of 1.66 and a quick ratio of 1.66. The company has a market capitalization of $10.77 billion, a PE ratio of 31.53, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.15 and a beta of 1.42. Franklin Resources, Inc. has a one year low of $18.83 and a one year high of $28.61.

Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 31st. The closed-end fund reported $0.59 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates 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 quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.65 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Franklin Resources, Inc. will post 2.16 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Franklin Resources Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 11th. Shareholders 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 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.25%. Franklin Resources’s dividend payout ratio is 196.93%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

BEN has been the topic of a number of research reports. The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded Franklin Resources from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $21.00 to $22.00 in a report on Monday, January 6th. UBS Group increased their price target on shares of Franklin Resources from $19.00 to $23.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note 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 for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. Barclays increased their target price on shares of Franklin Resources from $19.00 to $22.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reduced their price target on Franklin Resources from $20.00 to $19.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and eight have issued a hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $20.86.

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.