Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN) PT Lowered to $23.00

Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN) had its price target reduced by TD Cowen from $25.50 to $23.00 in a research report issued on Monday, Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a “hold” rating on the closed-end fund’s stock. TD Cowen’s target price points to a potential upside of 4.26% from the stock’s previous close.

Other equities analysts also recently issued reports about the stock. Evercore ISI cut their price target on shares of Franklin Resources from $29.00 to $26.00 and set an “underperform” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 30th. BMO Capital Markets reduced their price target on Franklin Resources from $30.00 to $27.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 30th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut their price objective on Franklin Resources from $29.00 to $24.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 30th. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on shares of Franklin Resources from $24.00 to $25.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 17th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and six have given a hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Franklin Resources currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $25.75.

Franklin Resources Price Performance

Shares of Franklin Resources stock opened at $22.06 on Monday. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $23.04 and a 200-day moving average price of $25.79. Franklin Resources has a one year low of $21.57 and a one year high of $30.32. The stock has a market cap of $11.61 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.61, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.93 and a beta of 1.43. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.90, a quick ratio of 1.82 and a current ratio of 1.82.

Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, April 29th. The closed-end fund reported $0.56 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.57 by ($0.01). Franklin Resources had a return on equity of 10.82% and a net margin of 11.09%. The firm had revenue of $2.15 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.66 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.61 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 11.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts expect that Franklin Resources will post 2.45 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at Franklin Resources

In related news, major shareholder Charles B. Johnson purchased 200,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 21st. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $22.80 per share, for a total transaction of $4,560,000.00. Following the acquisition, the insider now owns 88,703,192 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,022,432,777.60. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 24.13% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Power Corp of Canada increased its position in Franklin Resources by 18,266.0% during the 1st quarter. Power Corp of Canada now owns 31,557,117 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $887,071,000 after buying an additional 31,385,293 shares in the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors grew its stake in shares of Franklin Resources by 17.9% during the fourth quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 26,652,644 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $793,983,000 after acquiring an additional 4,043,808 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Franklin Resources by 11.1% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 35,889,477 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $1,008,853,000 after acquiring an additional 3,592,943 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Franklin Resources in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $49,547,000. Finally, Los Angeles Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of Franklin Resources by 2,322.5% in the 1st quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC now owns 868,984 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $24,427,000 after purchasing an additional 833,113 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 47.56% of the company’s stock.

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.