American International Group Inc. Sells 1,314 Shares of Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN)

American International Group Inc. lessened its holdings in Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN) by 1.7% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 73,946 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock after selling 1,314 shares during the quarter. American International Group Inc.’s holdings in Franklin Resources were worth $2,203,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of BEN. Blue Trust Inc. grew its stake in Franklin Resources by 240.5% in the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 882 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 623 shares during the period. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV purchased a new position in shares of Franklin Resources during the 4th quarter valued at $31,000. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV lifted its position in shares of Franklin Resources by 149.1% during the 4th quarter. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV now owns 1,111 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 665 shares during the last quarter. Tobam lifted its position in shares of Franklin Resources by 2,170.0% during the 4th quarter. Tobam now owns 1,135 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $34,000 after buying an additional 1,085 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Principal Securities Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Franklin Resources during the 4th quarter valued at $35,000. Institutional investors own 47.56% of the company’s stock.

Franklin Resources Price Performance

Shares of NYSE BEN opened at $22.85 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $12.02 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.06, a P/E/G ratio of 2.00 and a beta of 1.44. The company has a quick ratio of 1.82, a current ratio of 1.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.90. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $23.53 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $26.23. Franklin Resources, Inc. has a twelve month low of $21.57 and a twelve month high of $30.32.

Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN) last announced its earnings results on Monday, April 29th. The closed-end fund reported $0.56 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.57 by ($0.01). The business had revenue of $2.15 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.66 billion. Franklin Resources had a return on equity of 10.82% and a net margin of 11.09%. Franklin Resources’s revenue was up 11.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.61 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Franklin Resources, Inc. will post 2.45 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Franklin Resources Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 12th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 28th will be given a $0.31 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 28th. This represents a $1.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.43%. Franklin Resources’s dividend payout ratio is currently 70.86%.

Insider Transactions at Franklin Resources

In other Franklin Resources news, major shareholder Charles B. Johnson acquired 200,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 21st. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $22.80 per share, for a total transaction of $4,560,000.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 88,703,192 shares in the company, valued at $2,022,432,777.60. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 24.13% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have recently commented on the company. Evercore ISI dropped their price target on Franklin Resources from $29.00 to $26.00 and set an “underperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 30th. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on Franklin Resources from $24.00 to $25.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 17th. BMO Capital Markets dropped their price target on Franklin Resources from $30.00 to $27.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 30th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft dropped their price target on Franklin Resources from $29.00 to $24.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 30th. Finally, TD Cowen dropped their price objective on Franklin Resources from $29.00 to $25.50 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 30th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and six have given a hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $26.00.

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.