Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd Boosts Stock Position in Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN)

Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd raised its holdings in Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN) by 19.5% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 87,645 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock after purchasing an additional 14,332 shares during the period. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd’s holdings in Franklin Resources were worth $1,766,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in BEN. US Bancorp DE boosted its stake in Franklin Resources by 2.1% during the 1st quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 22,082 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $621,000 after acquiring an additional 444 shares during the last quarter. Interval Partners LP grew its stake in Franklin Resources by 0.4% in the second quarter. Interval Partners LP now owns 108,894 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $2,434,000 after purchasing an additional 483 shares in the last quarter. Richardson Financial Services Inc. grew its stake in Franklin Resources by 14.9% in the first quarter. Richardson Financial Services Inc. now owns 4,020 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $113,000 after purchasing an additional 520 shares in the last quarter. State of Michigan Retirement System raised its stake in Franklin Resources by 0.7% during the second quarter. State of Michigan Retirement System now owns 88,195 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $1,971,000 after buying an additional 600 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Gold Investment Management Ltd. lifted its holdings in Franklin Resources by 2.5% during the 2nd quarter. Gold Investment Management Ltd. now owns 26,032 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $582,000 after buying an additional 644 shares during the last quarter. 47.56% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Franklin Resources Stock Performance

BEN stock opened at $20.54 on Tuesday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $20.42 and a 200 day simple moving average of $22.37. The company has a market capitalization of $10.81 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.74, a PEG ratio of 2.29 and a beta of 1.39. The company has a quick ratio of 1.71, a current ratio of 1.71 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93. Franklin Resources, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $18.94 and a fifty-two week high of $30.32.

Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, July 26th. The closed-end fund reported $0.60 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.57 by $0.03. Franklin Resources had a net margin of 10.24% and a return on equity of 10.60%. The company had revenue of $2.12 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.09 billion. Sell-side analysts predict that Franklin Resources, Inc. will post 2.4 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Franklin Resources Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, October 11th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 30th were given a dividend of $0.31 per share. This represents a $1.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.04%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, September 30th. Franklin Resources’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 70.86%.

Insider Transactions at Franklin Resources

In other news, major shareholder Charles B. Johnson bought 100,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 29th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $19.84 per share, with a total value of $1,984,000.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the insider now directly owns 89,208,192 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,769,890,529.28. 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 is available through the SEC website. In other news, insider Franklin Resources Inc sold 7,900 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, October 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $43.71, for a total transaction of $345,309.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 36,519 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,596,245.49. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, major shareholder Charles B. Johnson bought 100,000 shares of Franklin Resources stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 29th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $19.84 per share, with a total value of $1,984,000.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the insider now owns 89,208,192 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,769,890,529.28. The trade was a 0.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have bought 231,600 shares of company stock valued at $4,537,637 and have sold 24,024 shares valued at $1,051,375. Company insiders own 24.13% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on Franklin Resources from $21.00 to $19.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reduced their price target on shares of Franklin Resources from $24.00 to $23.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, July 29th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reiterated an “underperform” rating and set a $23.00 price objective on shares of Franklin Resources in a research note on Thursday, August 22nd. Barclays cut their target price on shares of Franklin Resources from $20.00 to $19.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, October 14th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets lowered their target price on Franklin Resources from $27.00 to $26.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a report on Monday, July 29th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and six have assigned a hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $21.73.

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.