Invst LLC Invests $933,000 in Franklin Resources, Inc. $BEN

Invst LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN) in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 28,051 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock, valued at approximately $933,000.

A number of other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Danske Bank A S acquired a new stake in shares of Franklin Resources during the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. Motiv8 Investments LLC acquired a new position in shares of Franklin Resources during the fourth quarter valued at $28,000. Leonteq Securities AG acquired a new position in shares of Franklin Resources during the fourth quarter valued at $30,000. Atlas Capital Advisors Inc. bought a new position in shares of Franklin Resources during the fourth quarter worth about $32,000. Finally, Larson Financial Group LLC grew 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 acquiring an additional 452 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 47.56% of the company’s stock.

Franklin Resources Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:BEN opened at $35.07 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $17.82 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.86, a PEG ratio of 0.69 and a beta of 1.55. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.22, a current ratio of 1.48 and a quick ratio of 1.48. Franklin Resources, Inc. has a 12 month low of $21.10 and a 12 month high of $36.28. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $33.59 and its 200 day moving average price is $29.84.

Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, July 31st. The closed-end fund reported $0.72 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.66 by $0.06. Franklin Resources had a return on equity of 11.55% and a net margin of 8.72%.The firm had revenue of $2.36 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.76 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.49 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 14.3% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts anticipate that Franklin Resources, Inc. will post 2.88 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Franklin Resources Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 9th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, September 30th will be given a $0.33 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, September 30th. This represents a $1.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.8%. Franklin Resources’s payout ratio is 89.80%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages recently weighed in on BEN. Evercore reiterated an “underperform” rating and issued a $35.00 price objective on shares of Franklin Resources in a research report on Friday, July 10th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their target price on shares of Franklin Resources from $30.50 to $34.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 29th. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on shares of Franklin Resources from $31.00 to $34.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, June 26th. Wall Street Zen raised Franklin Resources from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Sunday, June 14th. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised Franklin Resources from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 3rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have given a Buy rating, four have assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Franklin Resources has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $32.44.

About Franklin Resources

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.