Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN) Shares Bought by Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co.

Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. grew its holdings in Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN) by 46.7% during the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 20,591 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock after purchasing an additional 6,557 shares during the quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co.’s holdings in Franklin Resources were worth $460,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in BEN. Altshuler Shaham Ltd purchased a new position in Franklin Resources during the second quarter worth approximately $27,000. Sentry Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Franklin Resources in the 2nd quarter worth $30,000. Headlands Technologies LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Franklin Resources in the 1st quarter worth $32,000. Denali Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Franklin Resources during the 1st quarter worth $44,000. Finally, Trust Co. of Vermont acquired a new position in shares of Franklin Resources during the 4th quarter valued at about $45,000. 47.56% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, major shareholder Charles B. Johnson acquired 100,000 shares of Franklin Resources stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, September 11th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $19.08 per share, for a total transaction of $1,908,000.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the insider now owns 89,308,192 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,704,000,303.36. The trade was a 0.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In related news, major shareholder Charles B. Johnson bought 100,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 11th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $19.08 per share, with a total value of $1,908,000.00. Following the purchase, the insider now directly owns 89,308,192 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,704,000,303.36. This trade represents a 0.00 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO Jennifer M. Johnson purchased 18,900 shares of Franklin Resources stock in a transaction on Friday, August 23rd. The stock was bought at an average cost of $20.95 per share, for a total transaction of $395,955.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 216,900 shares in the company, valued at $4,544,055. This represents a 0.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders acquired a total of 231,600 shares of company stock worth $4,537,637 over the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 24.13% of the company’s stock.

Franklin Resources Price Performance

BEN stock opened at $19.35 on Wednesday. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $20.78 and its 200 day moving average price is $22.88. Franklin Resources, Inc. has a 12-month low of $18.94 and a 12-month high of $30.32. The company has a market capitalization of $10.18 billion, a PE ratio of 11.14, a P/E/G ratio of 2.62 and a beta of 1.39. The company has a current ratio of 1.71, a quick ratio of 1.71 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93.

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

Franklin Resources Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 11th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 30th will be given a $0.31 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 30th. This represents a $1.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.41%. Franklin Resources’s dividend payout ratio is presently 70.86%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut their price objective on shares of Franklin Resources from $24.00 to $23.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, July 29th. TD Cowen raised their price target on shares of Franklin Resources from $23.00 to $24.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, July 29th. Barclays initiated coverage on Franklin Resources in a report on Tuesday, August 27th. They issued an “underweight” rating and a $20.00 price objective on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their price objective on Franklin Resources from $23.75 to $21.25 and set a “sell” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, September 30th. Finally, Evercore ISI reduced their target price on Franklin Resources from $20.00 to $19.00 and set an “underperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, October 4th. Five research 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 $22.93.

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.