Silvercrest Asset Management Group LLC Has $403,000 Holdings in Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN)

Silvercrest Asset Management Group LLC cut its stake in Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN) by 4.2% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 19,883 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock after selling 865 shares during the period. Silvercrest Asset Management Group LLC’s holdings in Franklin Resources were worth $403,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. CoreCap Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Franklin Resources by 147.1% in the 4th quarter. CoreCap Advisors LLC now owns 1,238 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 737 shares in the last quarter. GeoWealth Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Franklin Resources by 350.4% in the 4th quarter. GeoWealth Management LLC now owns 1,261 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 981 shares in the last quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Franklin Resources by 44.5% in the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 1,641 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 505 shares in the last quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC acquired a new stake in Franklin Resources during the 4th quarter valued at $34,000. Finally, Principal Securities Inc. increased its holdings in Franklin Resources by 561.1% during the 4th quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 1,957 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $40,000 after purchasing an additional 1,661 shares in the last quarter. 47.56% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Franklin Resources Stock Down 0.2%

NYSE BEN opened at $22.16 on Wednesday. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $19.33 and a 200-day moving average of $20.26. The stock has a market capitalization of $11.65 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.09, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 1.39. Franklin Resources, Inc. has a 52 week low of $16.25 and a 52 week high of $24.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89, a quick ratio of 1.66 and a current ratio of 1.66.

Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN) last released its earnings results on Friday, May 2nd. The closed-end fund reported $0.47 EPS for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.47. Franklin Resources had a return on equity of 9.45% and a net margin of 4.32%. The company had revenue of $2.11 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.44 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.56 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 6.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Franklin Resources, Inc. will post 2.16 EPS for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. BMO Capital Markets raised their price target on Franklin Resources from $20.00 to $23.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Bank of America dropped their price target on Franklin Resources from $20.00 to $17.00 and set an “underperform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 3rd. Barclays raised their price target on Franklin Resources from $17.00 to $19.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Monday, May 5th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on Franklin Resources from $20.00 to $21.50 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, May 5th. Finally, Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on Franklin Resources from $18.00 to $15.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 7th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $20.25.

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.