Franklin Resources, Inc. $BEN Shares Newly Bought by Goelzer Investment Management Inc.

Goelzer Investment Management Inc. purchased a new position in Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN) during the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund purchased 238,446 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock, valued at approximately $7,659,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the business. United Community Bank lifted its position in shares of Franklin Resources by 0.9% during the second quarter. United Community Bank now owns 37,849 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $1,259,000 after purchasing an additional 320 shares during the last quarter. Empirical Finance LLC raised its position in shares of Franklin Resources by 3.7% during the 2nd quarter. Empirical Finance LLC now owns 10,783 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $359,000 after purchasing an additional 380 shares during the period. Greenwich Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Franklin Resources by 0.3% in the 2nd quarter. Greenwich Wealth Management LLC now owns 143,825 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $4,785,000 after purchasing an additional 389 shares during the last quarter. Lido Advisors LLC increased its position in Franklin Resources by 4.0% in the first quarter. Lido Advisors LLC now owns 10,194 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $244,000 after buying an additional 395 shares during the period. Finally, Geneos Wealth Management Inc. grew its position in shares of Franklin Resources by 12.2% during the first quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 3,671 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $87,000 after acquiring an additional 400 shares during the last quarter. 47.56% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Franklin Resources Stock Down 1.2%

NYSE:BEN opened at $30.99 on Friday. Franklin Resources, Inc. has a 1-year low of $21.10 and a 1-year high of $36.28. The firm has a market capitalization of $15.75 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.21, a PEG ratio of 0.55 and a beta of 1.54. The company has a current ratio of 1.48, a quick ratio of 1.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.22. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $33.28 and its 200 day moving average price is $31.71.

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

Franklin Resources Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, October 9th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, September 30th were paid a dividend of $0.33 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, September 30th. This represents a $1.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.3%. Franklin Resources’s dividend payout ratio is 89.80%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. TD Cowen decreased their price objective on Franklin Resources from $40.00 to $38.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday, October 12th. Barclays restated a “mixed” rating on shares of Franklin Resources in a research report on Wednesday. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Franklin Resources from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Sunday, September 27th. Zacks Research downgraded shares of Franklin Resources from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 25th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods began coverage on Franklin Resources in a research report on Wednesday, September 9th. They set a “hold” rating and a $38.00 price objective for the company. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $35.89.

About Franklin Resources

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.