WESPAC Advisors LLC Takes Position in Franklin Resources, Inc. $BEN

WESPAC Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN) during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 21,030 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock, valued at approximately $486,000.

Several other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Capital A Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in Franklin Resources by 3,869.2% in the 2nd quarter. Capital A Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,032 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 1,006 shares in the last quarter. Total Investment Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Franklin Resources in the second quarter worth $27,000. Consultiva Wealth Management CORP. lifted its stake in shares of Franklin Resources by 177.1% during the second quarter. Consultiva Wealth Management CORP. now owns 1,283 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 820 shares during the period. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. increased its position in shares of Franklin Resources by 5,180.0% in the 3rd quarter. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. now owns 2,112 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $49,000 after acquiring an additional 2,072 shares during the period. Finally, Assetmark Inc. increased its position in shares of Franklin Resources by 80.2% in the 2nd quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 2,777 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $66,000 after acquiring an additional 1,236 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 47.56% of the company’s stock.

Franklin Resources Trading Down 1.5%

Shares of Franklin Resources stock opened at $25.27 on Wednesday. Franklin Resources, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $16.25 and a fifty-two week high of $26.08. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.95, a quick ratio of 1.40 and a current ratio of 1.40. The company has a market cap of $13.17 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.76, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.35 and a beta of 1.44. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $23.37 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $23.92.

Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, November 7th. The closed-end fund reported $0.67 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.57 by $0.10. Franklin Resources had a return on equity of 9.12% and a net margin of 5.98%.The company had revenue of $1.82 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.17 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.59 EPS. Franklin Resources’s quarterly revenue was up 6.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts predict that Franklin Resources, Inc. will post 2.16 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Franklin Resources Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 9th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 30th were given a dividend of $0.33 per share. This is a positive change from Franklin Resources’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.32. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, December 30th. This represents a $1.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.2%. Franklin Resources’s payout ratio is 145.05%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have weighed in on the company. BMO Capital Markets began coverage on Franklin Resources in a research note on Friday, October 3rd. They set an “outperform” rating and a $26.00 price target on the stock. Bank of America upped their target price on Franklin Resources from $19.00 to $22.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 2nd. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Franklin Resources from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Sunday, December 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on shares of Franklin Resources from $26.00 to $25.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Monday, November 10th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Franklin Resources in a report on Monday, December 29th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have given a Hold rating and five have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Reduce” and an average target price of $24.09.

About Franklin Resources

Franklin Resources, Inc, doing business as Franklin Templeton, is a global investment management organization that offers a wide range of asset management solutions to institutional and individual investors. The firm’s core focus is on delivering active portfolio management across equities, fixed income, multi-asset strategies and alternative investments. Franklin Templeton’s product lineup includes mutual funds, exchange-traded funds (ETFs), closed-end funds, separately managed accounts and sub-advisory services designed to meet varying risk-return objectives and income needs.

Founded in 1947 by Rupert H.