Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN) Short Interest Up 6.2% in September

Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN) saw a significant growth in short interest in the month of September. As of September 30th, there was short interest totalling 29,470,000 shares, a growth of 6.2% from the September 15th total of 27,760,000 shares. Currently, 10.5% of the shares of the company are short sold. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 4,640,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 6.4 days.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts recently issued reports on the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reiterated an “underperform” rating and set a $23.00 target price on shares of Franklin Resources in a research report on Thursday, August 22nd. UBS Group cut their price objective on shares of Franklin Resources from $25.00 to $24.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 10th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on shares of Franklin Resources from $20.00 to $19.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut their price objective on Franklin Resources from $24.00 to $23.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, July 29th. Finally, Evercore ISI reduced their price objective on Franklin Resources from $20.00 to $19.00 and set an “underperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, October 4th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and six have assigned a hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Franklin Resources currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $22.33.

Insider Activity at Franklin Resources

In related news, CEO Jennifer M. Johnson bought 18,900 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 23rd. The shares were bought at an average cost of $20.95 per share, with a total value of $395,955.00. Following the acquisition, the chief executive officer now owns 216,900 shares in the company, valued at $4,544,055. This trade represents a 0.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other news, CEO Jennifer M. Johnson purchased 18,900 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, August 23rd. The shares were acquired at an average price of $20.95 per share, with a total value of $395,955.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief executive officer now directly owns 216,900 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,544,055. 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 available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Jennifer M. Johnson acquired 12,700 shares of Franklin Resources stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 28th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $19.66 per share, with a total value of $249,682.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief executive officer now owns 2,637,700 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $51,857,182. This represents a 0.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders acquired 231,600 shares of company stock worth $4,537,637. 24.13% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Franklin Resources

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Altshuler Shaham Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Franklin Resources in the second quarter worth $27,000. Matrix Trust Co purchased a new position in Franklin Resources in the 3rd quarter worth $29,000. Sentry Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in Franklin Resources during the 2nd quarter worth about $30,000. Headlands Technologies LLC purchased a new stake in Franklin Resources during the 1st quarter valued at about $32,000. Finally, Denali Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Franklin Resources in the first quarter valued at about $44,000. 47.56% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Franklin Resources Stock Up 0.6 %

BEN traded up $0.13 on Thursday, hitting $20.67. The company had a trading volume of 2,600,719 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,992,063. The stock has a market capitalization of $10.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.81, a P/E/G ratio of 2.29 and a beta of 1.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93, a quick ratio of 1.71 and a current ratio of 1.71. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $20.49 and a 200-day moving average price of $22.54. Franklin Resources has a 12-month low of $18.94 and a 12-month high of $30.32.

Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN) last announced its earnings results on Friday, July 26th. The closed-end fund reported $0.60 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.57 by $0.03. Franklin Resources had a return on equity of 10.60% and a net margin of 10.24%. The firm had revenue of $2.12 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.09 billion. Analysts predict that Franklin Resources will post 2.4 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Franklin Resources Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, October 11th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 30th were issued a dividend of $0.31 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, September 30th. This represents a $1.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.00%. Franklin Resources’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 70.86%.

About Franklin Resources

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.