Royal London Asset Management Ltd. Raises Holdings in Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN)

Royal London Asset Management Ltd. raised its position in Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN) by 4.7% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 122,116 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock after purchasing an additional 5,527 shares during the period. Royal London Asset Management Ltd.’s holdings in Franklin Resources were worth $2,478,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC boosted its position in Franklin Resources by 44.5% during the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 1,641 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 505 shares during the last quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC grew its position in shares of Franklin Resources by 254.4% in the third quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 1,779 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $36,000 after purchasing an additional 1,277 shares in the last quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group acquired a new stake in shares of Franklin Resources in the third quarter valued at approximately $39,000. Principal Securities Inc. lifted its position in Franklin Resources by 561.1% during the fourth quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 1,957 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $40,000 after buying an additional 1,661 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Anchor Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in Franklin Resources by 30.2% during the third quarter. Anchor Investment Management LLC now owns 2,604 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $52,000 after buying an additional 604 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 47.56% of the company’s stock.

Franklin Resources Trading Up 1.1 %

NYSE BEN opened at $20.08 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89, a quick ratio of 1.66 and a current ratio of 1.66. The firm has a market cap of $10.55 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.89, a PEG ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 1.42. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $20.13 and a 200-day simple moving average of $20.57. Franklin Resources, Inc. has a one year low of $18.83 and a one year high of $28.15.

Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 31st. The closed-end fund reported $0.59 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 in the prior year, the business earned $0.65 earnings per share. Equities research analysts anticipate that Franklin Resources, Inc. will post 2.16 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Franklin Resources Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 11th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be paid a $0.32 dividend. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.37%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 31st. Franklin Resources’s payout ratio is presently 196.92%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

BEN has been the topic of several analyst reports. The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded Franklin Resources from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $21.00 to $22.00 in a report on Monday, January 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on shares of Franklin Resources from $21.00 to $19.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. UBS Group increased their price target on shares of Franklin Resources from $19.00 to $23.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price target on shares of Franklin Resources from $19.00 to $21.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on Franklin Resources from $20.00 to $23.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and eight have given a hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Franklin Resources currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $20.86.

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.