AXQ Capital LP Takes Position in Franklin Resources, Inc. $BEN

AXQ Capital LP bought a new position in Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN) during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm bought 23,706 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock, valued at approximately $548,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Jackson Creek Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Franklin Resources in the 3rd quarter valued at about $1,328,000. United Community Bank raised its holdings in Franklin Resources by 172.1% in the third quarter. United Community Bank now owns 34,069 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $788,000 after buying an additional 21,547 shares during the period. iA Global Asset Management Inc. acquired a new position in Franklin Resources during the third quarter valued at approximately $522,000. AlphaQuest LLC lifted its position in Franklin Resources by 34,715.9% during the third quarter. AlphaQuest LLC now owns 89,825 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $2,078,000 after buying an additional 89,567 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Machina Capital S.A.S. purchased a new stake in Franklin Resources during the third quarter worth approximately $840,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 47.56% of the company’s stock.

Franklin Resources Price Performance

Shares of NYSE BEN opened at $27.14 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.86, a current ratio of 1.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.01. Franklin Resources, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $16.25 and a fifty-two week high of $28.32. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $25.78 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $24.34. The firm has a market cap of $14.13 billion, a PE ratio of 25.13, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.85 and a beta of 1.46.

Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN) last released its earnings results on Friday, January 30th. The closed-end fund reported $0.70 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.55 by $0.15. The company had revenue of $1.75 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.23 billion. Franklin Resources had a return on equity of 9.58% and a net margin of 6.97%.The business’s revenue was up 3.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.59 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that Franklin Resources, Inc. will post 2.16 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Franklin Resources Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 10th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 31st will be given a $0.33 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 31st. This represents a $1.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.9%. Franklin Resources’s payout ratio is presently 122.22%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on BEN shares. TD Cowen restated a “hold” rating on shares of Franklin Resources in a report on Monday, February 2nd. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Franklin Resources in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Evercore upped their target price on Franklin Resources from $26.00 to $28.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a research report on Monday, February 2nd. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on Franklin Resources from $21.00 to $22.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 3rd. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised Franklin Resources from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, January 31st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have issued a Hold rating and four have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Reduce” and an average price target of $25.89.

About Franklin Resources

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.