Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. Increases Stock Position in Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN)

Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. raised its holdings in Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN) by 5.9% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 81,576 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock after purchasing an additional 4,530 shares during the quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd.’s holdings in Franklin Resources were worth $1,573,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. CoreCap Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Franklin Resources by 147.1% during the 4th quarter. CoreCap Advisors LLC now owns 1,238 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 737 shares in the last quarter. GeoWealth Management LLC raised its position in shares of Franklin Resources by 350.4% during the 4th quarter. GeoWealth Management LLC now owns 1,261 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 981 shares during the last quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC raised its position in shares of Franklin Resources by 44.5% during the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 1,641 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 505 shares during the last quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC acquired a new position in shares of Franklin Resources during the 4th quarter worth approximately $34,000. Finally, Contravisory Investment Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Franklin Resources during the 1st quarter worth approximately $46,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 47.56% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

BEN has been the subject of several research reports. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on Franklin Resources from $20.00 to $21.50 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, May 5th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on Franklin Resources from $14.00 to $19.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Wednesday. Cowen reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Franklin Resources in a report on Monday, June 16th. The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded Franklin Resources from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $29.00 price target for the company in a report on Friday, June 27th. Finally, Barclays boosted 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. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Franklin Resources currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $21.21.

Franklin Resources Stock Performance

NYSE:BEN opened at $24.75 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93, a current ratio of 1.95 and a quick ratio of 1.95. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $21.92 and a two-hundred day moving average of $20.42. The stock has a market cap of $13.01 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.40, a PEG ratio of 3.37 and a beta of 1.45. Franklin Resources, Inc. has a 1-year low of $16.25 and a 1-year high of $24.94.

Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN) last issued its earnings results on Friday, May 2nd. The closed-end fund reported $0.47 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.47. The business had revenue of $2.11 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.44 billion. Franklin Resources had a net margin of 4.65% and a return on equity of 9.13%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 6.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.56 EPS. On average, research analysts expect that Franklin Resources, Inc. will post 2.16 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Franklin Resources Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 11th. Investors of record on Friday, June 27th will be paid a dividend of $0.32 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 27th. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.17%. Franklin Resources’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 188.24%.

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.