ABC Arbitrage SA Takes $2.67 Million Position in Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN)

ABC Arbitrage SA purchased a new stake in shares of Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 131,783 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock, valued at approximately $2,674,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the stock. AustralianSuper Pty Ltd boosted its holdings in Franklin Resources by 6.1% in the fourth quarter. AustralianSuper Pty Ltd now owns 680,905 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $13,816,000 after purchasing an additional 39,276 shares in the last quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC boosted its holdings in Franklin Resources by 9.5% in the fourth quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC now owns 19,808 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $402,000 after purchasing an additional 1,716 shares in the last quarter. Sovran Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Franklin Resources in the fourth quarter worth $270,000. International Private Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Franklin Resources by 5.0% in the fourth quarter. International Private Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 13,518 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $274,000 after purchasing an additional 646 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Entropy Technologies LP bought a new stake in Franklin Resources in the fourth quarter worth $372,000. 47.56% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Franklin Resources Stock Up 1.7 %

Shares of BEN opened at $20.58 on Friday. Franklin Resources, Inc. has a 52 week low of $18.83 and a 52 week high of $28.61. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89, a quick ratio of 1.63 and a current ratio of 1.66. The firm has a market capitalization of $10.81 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.65, a P/E/G ratio of 2.14 and a beta of 1.42. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $20.48 and a 200-day simple moving average of $20.82.

Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 31st. The closed-end fund reported $0.59 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.56 by $0.03. Franklin Resources had a net margin of 4.32% and a return on equity of 9.45%. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.65 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts expect that Franklin Resources, Inc. will post 2.16 earnings per share for the current year.

Franklin Resources Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 11th. Investors of record on Monday, March 31st will be given a $0.32 dividend. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.22%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 31st. Franklin Resources’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 196.93%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

BEN has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. BMO Capital Markets upped their price objective on shares of Franklin Resources from $20.00 to $23.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their target price on shares of Franklin Resources from $19.00 to $21.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of Franklin Resources from $20.50 to $24.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. The Goldman Sachs Group raised shares of Franklin Resources from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $21.00 to $22.00 in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on shares of Franklin Resources from $21.00 to $19.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and eight have given a hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $20.86.

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.