Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN) Shares Acquired by State of Michigan Retirement System

State of Michigan Retirement System increased its position in shares of Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN) by 6.2% during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 87,595 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock after buying an additional 5,100 shares during the period. State of Michigan Retirement System’s holdings in Franklin Resources were worth $2,462,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Blue Trust Inc. increased its stake in shares of Franklin Resources by 240.5% during the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 882 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 623 shares during the period. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV purchased a new stake in shares of Franklin Resources during the fourth quarter worth approximately $31,000. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV increased its stake in shares of Franklin Resources by 149.1% during the fourth quarter. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV now owns 1,111 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 665 shares during the period. Tobam increased its stake in shares of Franklin Resources by 2,170.0% during the fourth quarter. Tobam now owns 1,135 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $34,000 after buying an additional 1,085 shares during the period. Finally, Principal Securities Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Franklin Resources during the fourth quarter worth approximately $35,000. 47.56% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other news, major shareholder Charles B. Johnson acquired 200,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 21st. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $22.80 per share, for a total transaction of $4,560,000.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 88,703,192 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,022,432,777.60. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 24.13% of the company’s stock.

Franklin Resources Stock Performance

Shares of Franklin Resources stock opened at $22.44 on Thursday. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $23.25 and its 200-day simple moving average is $26.04. The stock has a market capitalization of $11.81 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.82, a PEG ratio of 1.95 and a beta of 1.43. Franklin Resources, Inc. has a 12 month low of $21.57 and a 12 month high of $30.32. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.90, a current ratio of 1.82 and a quick ratio of 1.82.

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

Franklin Resources Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 12th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 28th will be issued a $0.31 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 28th. This represents a $1.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.53%. Franklin Resources’s payout ratio is 70.86%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms recently weighed in on BEN. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on shares of Franklin Resources from $24.00 to $25.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 17th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft dropped their price target on shares of Franklin Resources from $29.00 to $24.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 30th. BMO Capital Markets dropped their price target on shares of Franklin Resources from $30.00 to $27.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 30th. TD Cowen dropped their price target on shares of Franklin Resources from $29.00 to $25.50 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 30th. Finally, Evercore ISI dropped their price target on shares of Franklin Resources from $29.00 to $26.00 and set an “underperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 30th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and six have issued a hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $26.00.

Franklin Resources 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.