Merit Financial Group LLC Purchases New Holdings in Franklin Resources, Inc. $BEN

Merit Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN) during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund acquired 43,160 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock, valued at approximately $998,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Capital A Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Franklin Resources by 3,869.2% in the second quarter. Capital A Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,032 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 1,006 shares during the last quarter. Total Investment Management Inc. acquired a new position in Franklin Resources during the 2nd quarter worth $27,000. Consultiva Wealth Management CORP. grew its holdings in Franklin Resources by 177.1% during the 2nd quarter. Consultiva Wealth Management CORP. now owns 1,283 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 820 shares in the last quarter. Assetmark Inc. increased its position in shares of Franklin Resources by 80.2% in the 2nd quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 2,777 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $66,000 after purchasing an additional 1,236 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Caldwell Trust Co acquired a new stake in shares of Franklin Resources in the 2nd quarter valued at about $72,000. 47.56% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Franklin Resources Trading Up 2.6%

Shares of NYSE BEN opened at $25.13 on Wednesday. Franklin Resources, Inc. has a 12-month low of $16.25 and a 12-month high of $26.08. The company has a market cap of $13.10 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.61, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.29 and a beta of 1.44. The company has a current ratio of 1.40, a quick ratio of 1.40 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.95. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $23.10 and its 200 day simple moving average is $23.85.

Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN) last issued its earnings results on Friday, November 7th. The closed-end fund reported $0.67 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.57 by $0.10. Franklin Resources had a return on equity of 9.12% and a net margin of 5.98%.The firm had revenue of $1.82 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.17 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.59 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.0% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts expect that Franklin Resources, Inc. will post 2.16 EPS for the current year.

Franklin Resources Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 9th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 30th will be paid a dividend of $0.33 per share. This represents a $1.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 30th. This is a positive change from Franklin Resources’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.32. Franklin Resources’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 145.05%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts recently weighed in on the company. Wall Street Zen lowered Franklin Resources from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Sunday, December 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on Franklin Resources from $26.00 to $25.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, November 10th. BMO Capital Markets started coverage on Franklin Resources in a research report on Friday, October 3rd. They set an “outperform” rating and a $26.00 price target on the stock. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Franklin Resources in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Finally, Bank of America lifted their price objective on shares of Franklin Resources from $19.00 to $22.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 2nd. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and five have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Reduce” and a consensus target price of $24.09.

Franklin Resources Company Profile

Franklin Resources, Inc, doing business as Franklin Templeton, is a global investment management organization that offers a wide range of asset management solutions to institutional and individual investors. The firm’s core focus is on delivering active portfolio management across equities, fixed income, multi-asset strategies and alternative investments. Franklin Templeton’s product lineup includes mutual funds, exchange-traded funds (ETFs), closed-end funds, separately managed accounts and sub-advisory services designed to meet varying risk-return objectives and income needs.

Founded in 1947 by Rupert H.