The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company Takes $9.56 Million Position in Franklin Resources, Inc. $BEN

The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company purchased a new stake in shares of Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN) during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund purchased 287,391 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock, valued at approximately $9,561,000. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company owned about 0.06% of Franklin Resources at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Mariner LLC grew its stake in shares of Franklin Resources by 0.7% during the fourth quarter. Mariner LLC now owns 56,151 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $1,341,000 after buying an additional 377 shares during the last quarter. Lido Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Franklin Resources by 4.0% in the 1st quarter. Lido Advisors LLC now owns 10,194 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $244,000 after acquiring an additional 395 shares during the last quarter. Zions Bancorporation National Association UT boosted its holdings in shares of Franklin Resources by 35.5% during the 4th quarter. Zions Bancorporation National Association UT now owns 1,512 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $36,000 after acquiring an additional 396 shares in the last quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Franklin Resources by 12.2% during the 1st quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 3,671 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $87,000 after acquiring an additional 400 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sigma Planning Corp grew its position in Franklin Resources by 0.6% during the 1st quarter. Sigma Planning Corp now owns 67,747 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $1,600,000 after acquiring an additional 407 shares during the last quarter. 47.56% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Franklin Resources Stock Performance

Shares of BEN stock opened at $34.70 on Friday. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $33.69 and its 200 day simple moving average is $29.99. Franklin Resources, Inc. has a one year low of $21.10 and a one year high of $36.28. The stock has a market capitalization of $17.63 billion, a PE ratio of 23.61, a PEG ratio of 0.69 and a beta of 1.55. 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 released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, July 31st. The closed-end fund reported $0.72 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.66 by $0.06. Franklin Resources had a net margin of 8.72% and a return on equity of 11.55%. The firm had revenue of $2.36 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.76 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.49 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 14.3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts forecast that Franklin Resources, Inc. will post 2.88 earnings per share for the current year.

Franklin Resources Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 9th. Investors of record on Wednesday, September 30th will be issued a $0.33 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, September 30th. This represents a $1.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.8%. Franklin Resources’s payout ratio is presently 89.80%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have issued reports on BEN. Wall Street Zen raised Franklin Resources from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Sunday, June 14th. Barclays boosted their price target on Franklin Resources from $34.00 to $36.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, August 3rd. Zacks Research downgraded Franklin Resources from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 25th. Evercore reiterated an “underperform” rating and issued a $35.00 price objective on shares of Franklin Resources in a report on Friday, July 10th. Finally, TD Cowen lifted their target price on shares of Franklin Resources from $37.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, June 22nd. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have issued a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Franklin Resources presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $32.44.

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.