Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN) Given New $22.00 Price Target at Bank of America

Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN) had its price target upped by Bank of America from $19.00 to $22.00 in a research report released on Thursday,Benzinga reports. They currently have an underperform rating on the closed-end fund’s stock.

A number of other brokerages have also issued reports on BEN. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Franklin Resources from $22.00 to $29.00 and gave the company a “neutral” 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. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on shares of Franklin Resources from $20.00 to $21.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 12th. Evercore ISI boosted their target price on shares of Franklin Resources from $24.00 to $25.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a research note on Monday, August 4th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group raised shares of Franklin Resources from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $29.00 target price for the company in a research note on Friday, June 27th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and five have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and a consensus target price of $24.00.

Franklin Resources Stock Up 1.6%

NYSE BEN opened at $22.90 on Thursday. 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 fifty day moving average of $24.69 and a two-hundred day moving average of $22.42. The firm has a market capitalization of $11.89 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 44.91, a PEG ratio of 1.12 and a beta of 1.50. Franklin Resources has a 52 week low of $16.25 and a 52 week high of $26.08.

Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, August 1st. The closed-end fund reported $0.49 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.46 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $2.06 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.38 billion. Franklin Resources had a net margin of 3.73% and a return on equity of 8.76%. Franklin Resources’s quarterly revenue was down 2.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.60 earnings per share. On average, analysts predict that Franklin Resources will post 2.16 earnings per share for the current year.

Franklin Resources Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 10th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 30th will be issued a $0.32 dividend. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 30th. Franklin Resources’s payout ratio is presently 250.98%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Franklin Resources

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in BEN. Capital A Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in Franklin Resources by 3,869.2% during the 2nd quarter. Capital A Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,032 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 1,006 shares during the last quarter. Total Investment Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Franklin Resources during the 2nd quarter valued at about $27,000. Consultiva Wealth Management CORP. raised its holdings in Franklin Resources by 177.1% in the 2nd quarter. Consultiva Wealth Management CORP. now owns 1,283 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 820 shares during the period. Manchester Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Franklin Resources by 49.9% in the 1st quarter. Manchester Capital Management LLC now owns 1,668 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 555 shares during the period. Finally, Contravisory Investment Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Franklin Resources in the 1st quarter valued at about $46,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.