Evercore ISI Lowers Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN) Price Target to $26.00

Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN) had its price objective reduced by Evercore ISI from $29.00 to $26.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Tuesday, Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an “underperform” rating on the closed-end fund’s stock. Evercore ISI’s target price would suggest a potential upside of 14.19% from the company’s previous close.

A number of other analysts have also weighed in on BEN. UBS Group raised their price objective on shares of Franklin Resources from $26.00 to $30.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 10th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft dropped their price target on shares of Franklin Resources from $30.00 to $28.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 30th. BMO Capital Markets raised their price target on shares of Franklin Resources from $27.00 to $30.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 30th. Wells Fargo & Company raised shares of Franklin Resources from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and raised their price target for the company from $24.00 to $30.00 in a report on Monday, January 8th. Finally, TD Cowen assumed coverage on shares of Franklin Resources in a report on Thursday, January 4th. They set a “market perform” rating and a $32.00 price target on the stock. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and six have issued a hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Franklin Resources currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $26.00.

Franklin Resources Stock Down 0.3 %

NYSE:BEN opened at $22.77 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $11.99 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.01, a P/E/G ratio of 1.23 and a beta of 1.40. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.86, a quick ratio of 1.92 and a current ratio of 1.92. Franklin Resources has a fifty-two week low of $21.88 and a fifty-two week high of $30.32. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $26.62 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $26.35.

Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, April 29th. The closed-end fund reported $0.56 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.57 by ($0.01). The firm had revenue of $2.15 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.66 billion. Franklin Resources had a net margin of 11.09% and a return on equity of 11.04%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.61 earnings per share. Analysts predict that Franklin Resources will post 2.51 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Franklin Resources

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd boosted its holdings in shares of Franklin Resources by 148.7% in the fourth quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd now owns 65,100 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $1,939,000 after buying an additional 38,919 shares during the last quarter. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC lifted its holdings in Franklin Resources by 10.8% during the fourth quarter. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC now owns 1,491,598 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $44,435,000 after purchasing an additional 144,843 shares in the last quarter. Vest Financial LLC lifted its holdings in Franklin Resources by 53.6% during the fourth quarter. Vest Financial LLC now owns 1,188,199 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $35,396,000 after purchasing an additional 414,826 shares in the last quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. lifted its holdings in Franklin Resources by 13.0% during the third quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 966,212 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $23,749,000 after purchasing an additional 110,806 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Yousif Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in Franklin Resources by 0.8% during the fourth quarter. Yousif Capital Management LLC now owns 290,588 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $8,657,000 after purchasing an additional 2,338 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 47.56% of the company’s stock.

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.