SkyView Investment Advisors LLC Raises Position in Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN)

SkyView Investment Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN) by 3.2% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 19,485 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock after purchasing an additional 609 shares during the quarter. SkyView Investment Advisors LLC’s holdings in Franklin Resources were worth $393,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Franklin Resources during the third quarter worth $26,000. Altshuler Shaham Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Franklin Resources during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $27,000. Matrix Trust Co purchased a new position in Franklin Resources during the 3rd quarter valued at $29,000. Sentry Investment Management LLC bought a new position in Franklin Resources in the 2nd quarter valued at $30,000. Finally, Larson Financial Group LLC increased its stake in Franklin Resources by 254.4% in the third quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 1,779 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 1,277 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 47.56% of the company’s stock.

Franklin Resources Stock Down 1.3 %

Shares of Franklin Resources stock opened at $22.10 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.63, a current ratio of 1.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92. The company has a market cap of $11.57 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.70, a PEG ratio of 2.43 and a beta of 1.39. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $21.21 and its 200-day moving average price is $21.62. Franklin Resources, Inc. has a 52-week low of $18.94 and a 52-week high of $30.32.

Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, November 4th. The closed-end fund reported $0.59 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.60 by ($0.01). The business had revenue of $2.21 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.70 billion. Franklin Resources had a return on equity of 9.62% and a net margin of 5.48%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.84 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Franklin Resources, Inc. will post 2.39 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Franklin Resources Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 10th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 30th will be paid a dividend of $0.32 per share. This is a positive change from Franklin Resources’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.31. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 30th. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.79%. Franklin Resources’s payout ratio is presently 144.19%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on BEN shares. StockNews.com raised shares of Franklin Resources from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 14th. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their target price on shares of Franklin Resources from $23.75 to $21.25 and set a “sell” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, September 30th. Evercore ISI decreased their price target on shares of Franklin Resources from $20.00 to $19.00 and set an “underperform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, October 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on Franklin Resources from $22.00 to $21.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft decreased their target price on Franklin Resources from $20.00 to $19.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and seven have assigned a hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $20.66.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Franklin Resources Inc sold 8,467 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, October 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $43.69, for a total value of $369,923.23. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 51,019 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,229,020.11. This represents a 14.23 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Insiders have sold a total of 24,024 shares of company stock worth $1,051,375 over the last 90 days. 24.13% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

About Franklin Resources

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.