Weaver C. Barksdale & Associates Inc. Trims Stock Position in Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN)

Weaver C. Barksdale & Associates Inc. trimmed its stake in Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN) by 2.5% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 47,803 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock after selling 1,204 shares during the period. Weaver C. Barksdale & Associates Inc.’s holdings in Franklin Resources were worth $971,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in Franklin Resources by 44.5% in the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 1,641 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 505 shares in the last quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC boosted its position in shares of 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 valued at $36,000 after purchasing an additional 1,277 shares during the period. Brooklyn Investment Group acquired a new stake in shares of Franklin Resources in the 3rd quarter valued at about $39,000. Principal Securities Inc. grew its stake in Franklin Resources by 561.1% during the 4th quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 1,957 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $40,000 after buying an additional 1,661 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Anchor Investment Management LLC increased its position in Franklin Resources by 30.2% during the third quarter. Anchor Investment Management LLC now owns 2,604 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $52,000 after buying an additional 604 shares during the period. 47.56% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Franklin Resources Stock Performance

Shares of BEN stock opened at $20.01 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.66, a quick ratio of 1.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $20.14 and a 200-day simple moving average of $20.57. The company has a market cap of $10.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.79, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 1.42. Franklin Resources, Inc. has a 12-month low of $18.83 and a 12-month high of $28.15.

Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN) last released its earnings results on Friday, January 31st. The closed-end fund reported $0.59 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.56 by $0.03. Franklin Resources had a return on equity of 9.45% and a net margin of 4.32%. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.65 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts forecast that Franklin Resources, Inc. will post 2.16 EPS for the current year.

Franklin Resources Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 11th. Investors of record on Monday, March 31st will be issued a dividend of $0.32 per share. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.40%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 31st. Franklin Resources’s dividend payout ratio is currently 196.92%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

BEN has been the subject of several research analyst reports. BMO Capital Markets increased their price objective on Franklin Resources from $20.00 to $23.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on shares of Franklin Resources from $21.00 to $19.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on shares of Franklin Resources from $18.00 to $19.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Friday, December 20th. Barclays raised their price target on Franklin Resources from $19.00 to $22.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, UBS Group upped their price objective on Franklin Resources from $19.00 to $23.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Four analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and eight have given a hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $20.86.

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.