Franklin Resources’ (BEN) “Underperform” Rating Reiterated at Keefe, Bruyette & Woods

Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reissued their underperform rating on shares of Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN) in a research report sent to investors on Tuesday morning,Benzinga reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods currently has a $19.00 price target on the closed-end fund’s stock, down from their previous price target of $20.00.

Several other brokerages also recently commented on BEN. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft dropped their target price on shares of Franklin Resources from $20.00 to $19.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday. UBS Group dropped their price objective on shares of Franklin Resources from $24.00 to $21.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Barclays dropped their price objective on shares of Franklin Resources from $20.00 to $19.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, October 14th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on shares of Franklin Resources from $20.00 to $19.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. Finally, Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on shares of Franklin Resources from $21.00 to $19.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, October 18th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and six have assigned a hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $20.20.

Franklin Resources Trading Down 1.1 %

Shares of NYSE:BEN opened at $21.29 on Tuesday. 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 fifty day moving average of $20.25 and a two-hundred day moving average of $21.95. The firm has a market capitalization of $11.13 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.76, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.71 and a beta of 1.38.

Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN) last announced 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). The firm had revenue of $2.21 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.70 billion. Franklin Resources had a return on equity of 9.61% and a net margin of 5.48%. The business’s revenue was up 11.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.84 EPS. On average, equities analysts expect that Franklin Resources will post 2.53 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Franklin Resources Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, October 11th. Investors of record on Monday, September 30th were paid a $0.31 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, September 30th. This represents a $1.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.82%. Franklin Resources’s payout ratio is currently 144.19%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Franklin Resources

In other news, insider Franklin Resources Inc sold 7,900 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, October 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $43.71, for a total transaction of $345,309.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 36,519 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,596,245.49. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In other Franklin Resources news, CEO Jennifer M. Johnson acquired 18,900 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 23rd. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $20.95 per share, for a total transaction of $395,955.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief executive officer now directly owns 216,900 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,544,055. This represents a 0.00 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Franklin Resources Inc sold 7,900 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, October 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $43.71, for a total transaction of $345,309.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 36,519 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,596,245.49. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have bought 231,600 shares of company stock worth $4,537,637 and have sold 24,024 shares worth $1,051,375. Company insiders own 24.13% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Franklin Resources

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. US Bancorp DE increased its stake in Franklin Resources by 2.1% in the first quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 22,082 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $621,000 after purchasing an additional 444 shares in the last quarter. Interval Partners LP raised its holdings in shares of Franklin Resources by 0.4% during the second quarter. Interval Partners LP now owns 108,894 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $2,434,000 after acquiring an additional 483 shares during the period. Richardson Financial Services Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Franklin Resources by 14.9% during the first quarter. Richardson Financial Services Inc. now owns 4,020 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $113,000 after acquiring an additional 520 shares during the period. State of Michigan Retirement System raised its holdings in shares of Franklin Resources by 0.7% during the second quarter. State of Michigan Retirement System now owns 88,195 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $1,971,000 after acquiring an additional 600 shares during the period. Finally, Gold Investment Management Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of Franklin Resources by 2.5% during the second quarter. Gold Investment Management Ltd. now owns 26,032 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $582,000 after acquiring an additional 644 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 47.56% of the company’s stock.

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.