Parallel Advisors LLC Increases Stake in Franklin Resources, Inc. $BEN

Parallel Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN) by 41.0% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 7,978 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock after acquiring an additional 2,319 shares during the quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC’s holdings in Franklin Resources were worth $190,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of BEN. Manchester Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Franklin Resources by 49.9% during the 1st quarter. Manchester Capital Management LLC now owns 1,668 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 555 shares during the last quarter. Contravisory Investment Management Inc. purchased a new position in Franklin Resources during the first quarter valued at approximately $46,000. Signaturefd LLC lifted its holdings in Franklin Resources by 39.4% during the first quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 2,592 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $50,000 after purchasing an additional 732 shares in the last quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group raised its position in shares of Franklin Resources by 78.3% during the first quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 3,139 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $60,000 after buying an additional 1,378 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Private Trust Co. NA raised its position in shares of Franklin Resources by 79.8% during the first quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 3,802 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $73,000 after buying an additional 1,687 shares during the last quarter. 47.56% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Franklin Resources Stock Performance

BEN opened at $24.24 on Tuesday. Franklin Resources, Inc. has a 52-week low of $16.25 and a 52-week high of $26.08. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $24.88 and its 200-day moving average price is $22.25. The company has a quick ratio of 1.55, a current ratio of 1.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.94. The company has a market cap of $12.59 billion, a P/E ratio of 47.53, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 1.51.

Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, August 1st. The closed-end fund reported $0.49 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.46 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $2.06 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.38 billion. Franklin Resources had a net margin of 3.73% and a return on equity of 8.76%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 2.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.60 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Franklin Resources, Inc. will post 2.16 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Franklin Resources Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 10th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 30th will be given a dividend of $0.32 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 30th. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.3%. Franklin Resources’s payout ratio is currently 250.98%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on BEN shares. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on shares of Franklin Resources from $20.00 to $21.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 12th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised shares of Franklin Resources from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $29.00 price target for the company in a research note on Friday, June 27th. Evercore ISI lifted their price target on shares of Franklin Resources from $24.00 to $25.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a research note on Monday, August 4th. Zacks Research lowered shares of Franklin Resources from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 20th. Finally, Barclays reissued an “underweight” rating and set a $23.00 target price (up from $20.00) on shares of Franklin Resources in a research note on Monday, August 4th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and five have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and an average target price of $23.58.

Franklin Resources 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.