The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company Has $4.26 Million Stake in Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN)

The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company increased its stake in Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN) by 3.1% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 190,383 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock after purchasing an additional 5,774 shares during the period. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company’s holdings in Franklin Resources were worth $4,255,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Headlands Technologies LLC acquired a new position in shares of Franklin Resources during the first quarter worth about $32,000. Altshuler Shaham Ltd bought a new position in shares of Franklin Resources during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $27,000. Sentry Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Franklin Resources in the second quarter worth $30,000. Trust Co. of Vermont acquired a new position in Franklin Resources during the fourth quarter worth $45,000. Finally, Denali Advisors LLC bought a new position in Franklin Resources in the first quarter valued at $44,000. Institutional investors own 47.56% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Franklin Resources news, major shareholder Charles B. Johnson bought 100,000 shares of Franklin Resources stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 29th. The stock was bought at an average price of $19.84 per share, with a total value of $1,984,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 89,208,192 shares in the company, valued at $1,769,890,529.28. The trade was a 0.00 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other Franklin Resources news, major shareholder Charles B. Johnson acquired 100,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 29th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $19.84 per share, for a total transaction of $1,984,000.00. Following the purchase, the insider now directly owns 89,208,192 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,769,890,529.28. This trade represents a 0.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Jennifer M. Johnson acquired 12,700 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 28th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $19.66 per share, with a total value of $249,682.00. Following the acquisition, the chief executive officer now directly owns 2,637,700 shares in the company, valued at approximately $51,857,182. This trade represents a 0.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders have bought 231,600 shares of company stock worth $4,537,637 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 24.13% of the company’s stock.

Franklin Resources Stock Performance

Shares of BEN stock opened at $19.58 on Tuesday. Franklin Resources, Inc. has a 52 week low of $18.94 and a 52 week high of $30.32. The company has a market capitalization of $10.30 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.19, a PEG ratio of 2.62 and a beta of 1.39. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $20.84 and a 200 day simple moving average of $22.94. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93, a quick ratio of 1.71 and a current ratio of 1.71.

Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, July 26th. The closed-end fund reported $0.60 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.57 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $2.12 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.09 billion. Franklin Resources had a return on equity of 10.60% and a net margin of 10.24%. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Franklin Resources, Inc. will post 2.41 earnings per share for the current year.

Franklin Resources Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 11th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 30th will be issued a $0.31 dividend. This represents a $1.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.33%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 30th. Franklin Resources’s dividend payout ratio is 70.86%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on BEN shares. Barclays initiated coverage on shares of Franklin Resources in a research note on Tuesday, August 27th. They set an “underweight” rating and a $20.00 price objective for the company. Wells Fargo & Company started coverage on Franklin Resources in a research note on Thursday, September 12th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $20.00 price objective on the stock. UBS Group decreased their target price on shares of Franklin Resources from $25.00 to $24.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, July 10th. TD Cowen upped their price target on shares of Franklin Resources from $23.00 to $24.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, July 29th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reissued an “underperform” rating and issued a $23.00 price objective on shares of Franklin Resources in a research report on Thursday, August 22nd. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and six have issued a hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $22.93.

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.