Envestnet Asset Management Inc. Purchases 203,414 Shares of Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN)

Envestnet Asset Management Inc. grew its position in shares of Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN) by 230.1% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 291,821 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock after buying an additional 203,414 shares during the quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. owned 0.06% of Franklin Resources worth $5,921,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. MML Investors Services LLC raised its stake in shares of Franklin Resources by 8.6% in the third quarter. MML Investors Services LLC now owns 13,457 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $271,000 after purchasing an additional 1,066 shares during the last quarter. Virtu Financial LLC bought a new position in Franklin Resources during the 3rd quarter valued at about $880,000. SkyView Investment Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Franklin Resources by 3.2% during the 3rd quarter. SkyView Investment Advisors LLC now owns 19,485 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $393,000 after acquiring an additional 609 shares during the last quarter. Anchor Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of 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 valued at $52,000 after purchasing an additional 604 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sanctuary Advisors LLC bought a new position in Franklin Resources during the third quarter valued at approximately $352,000. Institutional investors own 47.56% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently weighed in on BEN. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on Franklin Resources from $21.00 to $19.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 16th. BMO Capital Markets upped their price target on shares of Franklin Resources from $20.00 to $23.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their price objective on shares of Franklin Resources from $21.50 to $19.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 14th. UBS Group upped their target price on shares of Franklin Resources from $19.00 to $23.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, TD Cowen dropped their price target on shares of Franklin Resources from $20.00 to $17.50 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 9th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and eight have issued a hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $18.96.

Franklin Resources Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:BEN opened at $17.36 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 $9.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.71, a P/E/G ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 1.36. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $19.28 and a 200 day moving average price of $20.27. Franklin Resources, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $16.25 and a fifty-two week high of $25.69.

Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN) last posted its earnings results on Friday, January 31st. The closed-end fund reported $0.59 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.56 by $0.03. Franklin Resources had a return on equity of 9.45% and a net margin of 4.32%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.65 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Franklin Resources, Inc. will post 2.16 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Franklin Resources Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 11th. Investors of record on Monday, March 31st were given a $0.32 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 31st. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 7.37%. Franklin Resources’s dividend payout ratio is currently 196.92%.

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.