Foster & Motley Inc. Sells 2,582 Shares of Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN)

Foster & Motley Inc. lowered its holdings in shares of Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN) by 8.9% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 26,327 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock after selling 2,582 shares during the period. Foster & Motley Inc.’s holdings in Franklin Resources were worth $784,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the business. Invesco Ltd. grew its stake in shares of Franklin Resources by 6.8% in the 3rd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 6,563,774 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $161,338,000 after buying an additional 415,512 shares during the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp grew its stake in shares of Franklin Resources by 7.1% in the third quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 3,053,751 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $75,061,000 after acquiring an additional 202,288 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Franklin Resources by 0.8% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,840,863 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $45,248,000 after acquiring an additional 14,896 shares in the last quarter. Barclays PLC raised its position in shares of Franklin Resources by 138.0% in the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 1,750,779 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $43,034,000 after purchasing an additional 1,015,225 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Vest Financial LLC boosted its stake in Franklin Resources by 53.6% in the 4th quarter. Vest Financial LLC now owns 1,188,199 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $35,396,000 after purchasing an additional 414,826 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 47.56% of the company’s stock.

Franklin Resources Stock Down 1.0 %

Franklin Resources stock opened at $25.34 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $13.34 billion, a PE ratio of 13.33, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.34 and a beta of 1.40. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.86, a quick ratio of 1.92 and a current ratio of 1.92. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $26.99 and a 200 day moving average of $26.34. Franklin Resources, Inc. has a one year low of $21.88 and a one year high of $30.32.

Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, January 29th. The closed-end fund reported $0.65 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.58 by $0.07. Franklin Resources had a net margin of 12.30% and a return on equity of 11.15%. The firm had revenue of $1.99 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.51 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.51 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 1.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Franklin Resources, Inc. will post 2.52 EPS for the current year.

Franklin Resources Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 12th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 28th were issued a dividend of $0.31 per share. This represents a $1.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.89%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 27th. Franklin Resources’s dividend payout ratio is presently 65.26%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have issued reports on the stock. TD Cowen began coverage on shares of Franklin Resources in a report on Thursday, January 4th. They issued a “market perform” rating and a $32.00 target price for the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered their price objective on Franklin Resources from $30.00 to $28.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 30th. StockNews.com lowered Franklin Resources from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, February 1st. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on Franklin Resources from $24.00 to $25.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 17th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets lifted their price objective on Franklin Resources from $27.00 to $30.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 30th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and six have given a hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Franklin Resources currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $27.50.

Franklin Resources Company Profile

Franklin Resources, Inc is a publicly owned asset management holding company. Through its subsidiaries, the firm provides its services to individuals, institutions, pension plans, trusts, and partnerships. It launches equity, fixed income, balanced, and multi-asset mutual funds through its subsidiaries.