Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN) Shares Acquired by Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC

Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC raised its holdings in shares of Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN) by 220.7% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 59,616 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock after purchasing an additional 41,024 shares during the period. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC’s holdings in Franklin Resources were worth $1,676,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Blue Trust Inc. increased its position in shares of Franklin Resources by 240.5% during the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 882 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 623 shares in the last quarter. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV acquired a new position in shares of Franklin Resources in the 4th quarter valued at $31,000. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV increased its position in shares of Franklin Resources by 149.1% in 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 acquiring an additional 665 shares during the period. Tobam increased its position in shares of Franklin Resources by 2,170.0% in the 4th quarter. Tobam now owns 1,135 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $34,000 after acquiring an additional 1,085 shares during the period. Finally, Principal Securities Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Franklin Resources in the 4th quarter valued at $35,000. 47.56% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on BEN shares. TD Cowen cut their target price on Franklin Resources from $29.00 to $25.50 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 30th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut their target price 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. Evercore ISI cut their target price 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 target price on Franklin Resources from $24.00 to $25.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 17th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets cut their target price 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. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and six have issued a hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Franklin Resources has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $26.00.

Insider Transactions at Franklin Resources

In related news, major shareholder Charles B. Johnson purchased 200,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 21st. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $22.80 per share, with a total value of $4,560,000.00. Following the purchase, the insider now owns 88,703,192 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,022,432,777.60. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Corporate insiders own 24.13% of the company’s stock.

Franklin Resources Trading Up 0.9 %

BEN stock opened at $22.44 on Thursday. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $23.25 and its 200-day simple moving average is $26.04. The company has a quick ratio of 1.82, a current ratio of 1.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.90. Franklin Resources, Inc. has a 52-week low of $21.57 and a 52-week high of $30.32. The firm has a market cap of $11.81 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.82, a PEG ratio of 1.95 and a beta of 1.43.

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

Franklin Resources Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 12th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 28th will be paid a dividend of $0.31 per share. This represents a $1.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.53%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 28th. Franklin Resources’s payout ratio is currently 70.86%.

About Franklin Resources

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.