Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd Buys Shares of 264,778 Franklin Resources, Inc. $BEN

Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN) in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 264,778 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock, valued at approximately $6,254,000. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd owned about 0.05% of Franklin Resources as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Mariner LLC boosted its stake in Franklin Resources by 0.7% during the 4th quarter. Mariner LLC now owns 56,151 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $1,341,000 after purchasing an additional 377 shares during the period. Zions Bancorporation National Association UT increased its stake in shares of Franklin Resources by 35.5% in the fourth quarter. Zions Bancorporation National Association UT now owns 1,512 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $36,000 after purchasing an additional 396 shares during the period. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC raised its holdings in shares of Franklin Resources by 4.2% during the fourth quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 9,751 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $233,000 after buying an additional 397 shares during the last quarter. Horizon Investments LLC raised its holdings in shares of Franklin Resources by 4.3% during the fourth quarter. Horizon Investments LLC now owns 10,471 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $250,000 after buying an additional 433 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Larson Financial Group LLC boosted its position in shares of Franklin Resources by 48.1% during the fourth quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 1,392 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 452 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 47.56% of the company’s stock.

Franklin Resources Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:BEN opened at $34.05 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $17.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.99, a PEG ratio of 0.88 and a beta of 1.54. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.10, a current ratio of 1.87 and a quick ratio of 1.87. Franklin Resources, Inc. has a 12 month low of $21.10 and a 12 month high of $34.55. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $31.58 and its 200 day moving average price is $27.59.

Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The closed-end fund reported $0.71 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.55 by $0.16. Franklin Resources had a return on equity of 10.58% and a net margin of 8.12%.The firm had revenue of $1.75 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.70 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.47 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 8.7% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts anticipate that Franklin Resources, Inc. will post 2.79 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Franklin Resources Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 10th. Investors of record on Monday, June 29th will be issued a dividend of $0.33 per share. This represents a $1.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 29th. Franklin Resources’s payout ratio is presently 100.76%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently commented on BEN. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on Franklin Resources from $31.00 to $34.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, June 26th. Barclays set a $31.00 price target on Franklin Resources and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 29th. Weiss Ratings raised Franklin Resources from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on Franklin Resources from $28.00 to $31.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price objective on shares of Franklin Resources from $30.50 to $34.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 29th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have issued a Buy rating, four have issued a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Franklin Resources currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $30.67.

Franklin Resources Company Profile

Franklin Resources, Inc, doing business as Franklin Templeton, is a global investment management organization that offers a wide range of asset management solutions to institutional and individual investors. The firm’s core focus is on delivering active portfolio management across equities, fixed income, multi-asset strategies and alternative investments. Franklin Templeton’s product lineup includes mutual funds, exchange-traded funds (ETFs), closed-end funds, separately managed accounts and sub-advisory services designed to meet varying risk-return objectives and income needs.

Founded in 1947 by Rupert H.