Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN) Stock Gets Price Target Boost from JPMorgan Chase & Co.

Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN) had its price target raised by JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $34.00 to $35.00 in a report issued on Monday, Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a “neutral” rating on the closed-end fund’s stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co.‘s price target points to a potential upside of 12.18% from the company’s previous close.

BEN has been the subject of a number of other research reports. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on shares of Franklin Resources from $34.00 to $35.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, September 25th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods assumed coverage on shares of Franklin Resources in a report on Wednesday, September 9th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $38.00 target price on the stock. UBS Group assumed coverage on Franklin Resources in a research note on Wednesday, October 7th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $40.00 target price for the company. TD Cowen lowered their target price on Franklin Resources from $40.00 to $38.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Franklin Resources in a report on Monday, August 31st. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $36.11.

Franklin Resources Stock Down 1.9%

BEN stock opened at $31.20 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $15.85 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.36, a PEG ratio of 0.56 and a beta of 1.54. Franklin Resources has a 1-year low of $21.10 and a 1-year high of $36.28. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $33.47 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $31.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.22, a current ratio of 1.48 and a quick ratio of 1.48.

Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, July 31st. The closed-end fund reported $0.72 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.66 by $0.06. Franklin Resources had a net margin of 8.72% and a return on equity of 11.55%. The company had revenue of $2.36 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.76 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.49 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 14.3% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts predict that Franklin Resources will post 2.91 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Trading of Franklin Resources

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Wetzel Investment Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in Franklin Resources during the 3rd quarter valued at about $187,000. B. Riley Wealth Advisors Inc. bought a new position in Franklin Resources in the 3rd quarter worth about $200,000. Krilogy Financial LLC grew its position in Franklin Resources by 143.6% in the 3rd quarter. Krilogy Financial LLC now owns 18,165 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $583,000 after purchasing an additional 10,708 shares during the last quarter. Contravisory Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Franklin Resources by 81.7% in the third quarter. Contravisory Investment Management Inc. now owns 54,024 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $1,902,000 after purchasing an additional 24,290 shares during the period. Finally, Lincoln Capital Corp acquired a new stake in shares of Franklin Resources in the third quarter valued at approximately $2,178,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 47.56% of the company’s stock.

Franklin Resources Company Profile

Franklin Resources, Inc, operating under the Franklin Templeton brand, is a global investment management organization. The company provides investment solutions for individual investors, financial professionals, institutions and retirement-plan participants through a range of actively managed and specialized strategies.

Its products and services include mutual funds, exchange-traded funds, separately managed accounts, institutional mandates and alternative investment strategies. Franklin Templeton offers capabilities spanning equities, fixed income, multi-asset investing, private markets and other specialized areas, with investment teams and brands serving different market segments and regions.

Founded in 1947 by Rupert H.