Barclays Cuts Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN) Price Target to $19.00

Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN) had its target price cut by Barclays from $21.00 to $19.00 in a report issued on Friday morning,Benzinga reports. They currently have an underweight rating on the closed-end fund’s stock.

BEN has been the subject of several other reports. StockNews.com raised Franklin Resources from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, November 14th. UBS Group decreased their price objective on Franklin Resources from $24.00 to $21.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Evercore ISI cut their price target on Franklin Resources from $20.00 to $19.00 and set an “underperform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, October 4th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft decreased their target price on shares of Franklin Resources from $20.00 to $19.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on shares of Franklin Resources from $22.50 to $20.50 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and eight have assigned a hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $20.18.

Franklin Resources Stock Performance

Shares of BEN opened at $19.56 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92, a current ratio of 1.63 and a quick ratio of 1.63. Franklin Resources has a one year low of $18.83 and a one year high of $28.61. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $21.14 and a 200-day moving average of $21.15. The company has a market cap of $10.25 billion, a PE ratio of 22.74, a P/E/G ratio of 2.06 and a beta of 1.41.

Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN) last posted its earnings results on Monday, November 4th. The closed-end fund reported $0.59 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.60 by ($0.01). The business had revenue of $2.21 billion during 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 company’s revenue was up 11.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.84 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that Franklin Resources will post 2.38 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Franklin Resources Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 10th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 30th were paid a dividend of $0.32 per share. This is an increase from Franklin Resources’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.31. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 30th. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.55%. Franklin Resources’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 148.84%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Franklin Resources

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. raised its position in Franklin Resources by 50.6% in the 2nd quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 97,950 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $2,189,000 after buying an additional 32,904 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its stake in shares of Franklin Resources by 1.7% in the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 3,183,950 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $71,171,000 after buying an additional 54,063 shares during the period. Amalgamated Bank lifted its holdings in Franklin Resources by 2.5% during the second quarter. Amalgamated Bank now owns 83,401 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $1,864,000 after purchasing an additional 2,059 shares in the last quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC boosted its holdings in Franklin Resources by 57.1% in the 2nd quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 870,318 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $19,432,000 after buying an additional 316,211 shares during the period. Finally, XTX Topco Ltd grew its position in shares of Franklin Resources by 158.8% during the second quarter. XTX Topco Ltd now owns 40,765 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $911,000 after purchasing an additional 25,014 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 47.56% of the company’s stock.

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.