Foster & Motley Inc. Decreases Position in Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN)

Foster & Motley Inc. reduced its stake in shares of Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN) by 31.4% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 10,769 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock after selling 4,936 shares during the quarter. Foster & Motley Inc.’s holdings in Franklin Resources were worth $218,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Franklin Resources during the third quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Matrix Trust Co purchased a new stake in Franklin Resources during the 3rd quarter worth $29,000. Larson Financial Group LLC lifted its holdings in Franklin Resources by 254.4% in the 3rd quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 1,779 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $36,000 after buying an additional 1,277 shares in the last quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group purchased a new position in Franklin Resources in the 3rd quarter valued at about $39,000. Finally, Northwest Investment Counselors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Franklin Resources during the third quarter worth about $41,000. 47.56% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently commented on BEN shares. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on Franklin Resources from $18.00 to $19.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Friday, December 20th. StockNews.com raised shares of Franklin Resources from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 14th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut their price target on shares of Franklin Resources from $20.00 to $19.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on shares of Franklin Resources from $21.00 to $19.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, January 16th. Finally, Barclays reduced their price target on shares of Franklin Resources from $21.00 to $19.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 17th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and eight have assigned a hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $20.18.

Franklin Resources Trading Up 10.3 %

NYSE:BEN opened at $22.22 on Friday. Franklin Resources, Inc. has a 12-month low of $18.83 and a 12-month high of $28.61. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92, a current ratio of 1.63 and a quick ratio of 1.63. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $20.85 and a 200 day simple moving average of $21.01. The firm has a market capitalization of $11.64 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.84, a P/E/G ratio of 1.35 and a beta of 1.41.

Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 31st. The closed-end fund reported $0.59 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.56 by $0.03. Franklin Resources had a net margin of 5.48% and a return on equity of 9.62%. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.65 earnings per share. Equities research analysts predict that Franklin Resources, Inc. will post 2.21 EPS for the current year.

Franklin Resources Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 10th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 30th were issued a dividend of $0.32 per share. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.76%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 30th. This is a boost from Franklin Resources’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.31. Franklin Resources’s payout ratio is 148.84%.

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.