Franklin Resources, Inc. $BEN Shares Bought by Xponance Inc.

Xponance Inc. boosted its stake in Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN) by 234.0% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 99,631 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock after purchasing an additional 69,802 shares during the period. Xponance Inc.’s holdings in Franklin Resources were worth $2,304,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of BEN. Capital A Wealth Management LLC grew its position 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 valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 1,006 shares in the last quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC purchased a new position in Franklin Resources in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Total Investment Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Franklin Resources during the second quarter worth $27,000. Consultiva Wealth Management CORP. boosted its holdings in Franklin Resources by 177.1% in the second quarter. Consultiva Wealth Management CORP. now owns 1,283 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 820 shares during the period. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Franklin Resources by 129.1% during the 3rd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,313 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 740 shares during the period. 47.56% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Franklin Resources Trading Up 1.7%

BEN opened at $27.00 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $14.06 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.00, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.83 and a beta of 1.46. Franklin Resources, Inc. has a 52 week low of $16.25 and a 52 week high of $28.32. The business’s 50 day moving average is $26.02 and its two-hundred day moving average is $24.38. The company has a quick ratio of 1.86, a current ratio of 1.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.01.

Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN) last announced its earnings results on Friday, January 30th. The closed-end fund reported $0.70 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.55 by $0.15. The business had revenue of $1.75 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.23 billion. Franklin Resources had a net margin of 6.97% and a return on equity of 9.58%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 3.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.59 EPS. On average, research analysts predict that Franklin Resources, Inc. will post 2.16 EPS for the current year.

Franklin Resources Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 10th. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 31st will be issued a dividend of $0.33 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 31st. This represents a $1.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.9%. Franklin Resources’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 122.22%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently weighed in on BEN shares. Barclays raised their target price on shares of Franklin Resources from $22.00 to $25.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Thursday, January 15th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Franklin Resources from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, January 31st. TD Cowen reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Franklin Resources in a report on Monday, February 2nd. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on Franklin Resources from $21.00 to $22.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 3rd. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Franklin Resources in a report on Monday, December 29th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have given a Hold rating and four have given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Reduce” and an average target price of $25.89.

Franklin Resources Profile

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.