Vienna Powszechne Towarzystwo Emerytalne S.A. Vienna Insurance Group Grows Stock Holdings in Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN)

Vienna Powszechne Towarzystwo Emerytalne S.A. Vienna Insurance Group grew its position in Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN) by 2.0% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 58,961 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,140 shares during the quarter. Vienna Powszechne Towarzystwo Emerytalne S.A. Vienna Insurance Group’s holdings in Franklin Resources were worth $1,196,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Franklin Resources by 44.5% in the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 1,641 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 505 shares during the period. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Franklin Resources by 0.8% in the third quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 69,585 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $1,402,000 after acquiring an additional 572 shares during the period. Hardy Reed LLC raised its stake in shares of Franklin Resources by 3.7% in the fourth quarter. Hardy Reed LLC now owns 16,721 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $339,000 after acquiring an additional 591 shares during the period. Anchor Investment Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Franklin Resources by 30.2% in the third quarter. Anchor Investment Management LLC now owns 2,604 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $52,000 after acquiring an additional 604 shares during the period. Finally, SkyView Investment Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Franklin Resources by 3.2% in the third quarter. SkyView Investment Advisors LLC now owns 19,485 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $393,000 after acquiring an additional 609 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 47.56% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on BEN. The Goldman Sachs Group raised shares of Franklin Resources from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and increased their target price for the company from $21.00 to $22.00 in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of Franklin Resources from $20.50 to $24.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. BMO Capital Markets upped their price target 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. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on shares of Franklin Resources from $21.00 to $19.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 16th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price target on shares of Franklin Resources from $19.00 to $21.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Four analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and eight have issued a hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $20.86.

Franklin Resources Stock Down 2.0 %

Shares of Franklin Resources stock opened at $19.24 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89, a current ratio of 1.66 and a quick ratio of 1.66. Franklin Resources, Inc. has a 1 year low of $18.83 and a 1 year high of $28.16. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $20.12 and its two-hundred day moving average is $20.58. The stock has a market cap of $10.10 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.59, a PEG ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 1.42.

Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN) last issued its 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 quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.65 EPS. As a group, research analysts expect that Franklin Resources, Inc. will post 2.16 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Franklin Resources Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 11th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be given a dividend of $0.32 per share. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.65%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 31st. Franklin Resources’s payout ratio is 196.92%.

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.