Gold Investment Management Ltd. Grows Stake in Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN)

Gold Investment Management Ltd. raised its stake in Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN) by 4.3% during the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 27,148 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,116 shares during the period. Gold Investment Management Ltd.’s holdings in Franklin Resources were worth $548,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. AIA Group Ltd boosted its holdings in shares of Franklin Resources by 20.2% in the third quarter. AIA Group Ltd now owns 12,282 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $247,000 after acquiring an additional 2,060 shares during the period. Verity Asset Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Franklin Resources by 28.8% during the third quarter. Verity Asset Management Inc. now owns 17,051 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $344,000 after purchasing an additional 3,811 shares during the last quarter. Lewis Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Franklin Resources during the third quarter worth $220,000. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Franklin Resources by 9.3% during the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 381,192 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $7,681,000 after purchasing an additional 32,490 shares during the period. Finally, Centennial Wealth Advisory LLC grew its position in Franklin Resources by 10.2% in the 3rd quarter. Centennial Wealth Advisory LLC now owns 16,128 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $325,000 after buying an additional 1,496 shares during the last quarter. 47.56% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Franklin Resources Stock Performance

BEN traded down $0.20 during trading on Friday, reaching $21.09. 79,445 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,036,220. The company has a current ratio of 1.71, a quick ratio of 1.71 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93. The stock has a market cap of $11.03 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.76, a PEG ratio of 2.71 and a beta of 1.38. Franklin Resources, Inc. has a 52 week low of $18.94 and a 52 week high of $30.32. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $20.25 and a 200 day moving average of $21.95.

Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN) last posted its earnings results on Monday, November 4th. The closed-end fund reported $0.59 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.60 by ($0.01). Franklin Resources had a return on equity of 9.61% and a net margin of 5.48%. The firm had revenue of $2.21 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.70 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.84 EPS. Franklin Resources’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Franklin Resources, Inc. will post 2.53 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Franklin Resources Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, October 11th. Investors of record on Monday, September 30th were issued a $0.31 dividend. This represents a $1.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.88%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, September 30th. Franklin Resources’s payout ratio is currently 144.19%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Franklin Resources

In other Franklin Resources news, insider Franklin Resources Inc sold 7,657 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, October 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $43.90, for a total value of $336,142.30. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 65,862 shares in the company, valued at $2,891,341.80. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In related news, major shareholder Charles B. Johnson purchased 100,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 11th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $19.08 per share, for a total transaction of $1,908,000.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 89,308,192 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,704,000,303.36. This trade represents a 0.00 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Franklin Resources Inc sold 7,657 shares of Franklin Resources stock in a transaction dated Monday, October 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $43.90, for a total value of $336,142.30. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 65,862 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,891,341.80. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have purchased 231,600 shares of company stock valued at $4,537,637 and have sold 24,024 shares valued at $1,051,375. 24.13% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have recently commented on the stock. StockNews.com cut shares of Franklin Resources from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on Franklin Resources from $21.00 to $19.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, October 18th. Evercore ISI decreased their price target on Franklin Resources from $20.00 to $19.00 and set an “underperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, October 4th. Barclays cut their price objective on Franklin Resources from $20.00 to $19.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, October 14th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft decreased their target price on shares of Franklin Resources from $20.00 to $19.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and six have given a hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price 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.