MQS Management LLC Takes $363,000 Position in Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN)

MQS Management LLC purchased a new position in Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN) during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 16,257 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock, valued at approximately $363,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of BEN. Sentry Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Franklin Resources in the second quarter worth $30,000. Headlands Technologies LLC bought a new stake in Franklin Resources in the 1st quarter valued at $32,000. Principal Securities Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Franklin Resources in the fourth quarter worth about $35,000. Denali Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Franklin Resources during the 1st quarter worth approximately $44,000. Finally, Trust Co. of Vermont bought a new position in shares of Franklin Resources in the 4th quarter valued at about $45,000. 47.56% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Franklin Resources Trading Up 2.4 %

NYSE BEN opened at $20.87 on Friday. The company has a fifty day moving average of $21.52 and a 200 day moving average of $23.55. The company has a market capitalization of $10.98 billion, a PE ratio of 11.93, a P/E/G ratio of 2.45 and a beta of 1.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93, a current ratio of 1.71 and a quick ratio of 1.71. Franklin Resources, Inc. has a 1 year low of $18.94 and a 1 year high of $30.32.

Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN) last issued its earnings results on Friday, July 26th. The closed-end fund reported $0.60 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.57 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $2.12 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.09 billion. Franklin Resources had a return on equity of 10.60% and a net margin of 10.24%. Research analysts forecast that Franklin Resources, Inc. will post 2.41 earnings per share for the current year.

Franklin Resources Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 11th. Investors of record on Monday, September 30th will be issued a dividend of $0.31 per share. This represents a $1.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.94%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 30th. Franklin Resources’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 70.86%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have issued reports on BEN. UBS Group dropped their target price on Franklin Resources from $25.00 to $24.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, July 10th. Barclays initiated coverage on Franklin Resources in a research report on Tuesday, August 27th. They issued an “underweight” rating and a $20.00 price target for the company. Evercore ISI cut their price target on shares of Franklin Resources from $24.00 to $20.00 and set an “underperform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, September 5th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reaffirmed an “underperform” rating and issued a $23.00 price objective on shares of Franklin Resources in a research report on Thursday, August 22nd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company assumed coverage on shares of Franklin Resources in a research note on Thursday, September 12th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $20.00 price objective for the company. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and six have assigned a hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $23.00.

Insider Buying and Selling at Franklin Resources

In other news, major shareholder Charles B. Johnson bought 100,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 29th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $19.84 per share, with a total value of $1,984,000.00. Following the purchase, the insider now directly owns 89,208,192 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,769,890,529.28. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In other Franklin Resources news, major shareholder Charles B. Johnson purchased 100,000 shares of Franklin Resources stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 29th. The stock was bought at an average price of $19.84 per share, with a total value of $1,984,000.00. Following the acquisition, the insider now owns 89,208,192 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,769,890,529.28. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Jennifer M. Johnson purchased 12,700 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 28th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $19.66 per share, for a total transaction of $249,682.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 2,637,700 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $51,857,182. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders bought 231,600 shares of company stock valued at $4,537,637. Corporate insiders own 24.13% of the company’s stock.

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.