Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN) Shares Sold by Quantinno Capital Management LP

Quantinno Capital Management LP reduced its position in Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN) by 35.1% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 26,262 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock after selling 14,222 shares during the quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP’s holdings in Franklin Resources were worth $529,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Altshuler Shaham Ltd bought a new position in Franklin Resources during the second quarter worth $27,000. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Franklin Resources during the third quarter worth about $26,000. Sentry Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in Franklin Resources in the second quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Matrix Trust Co bought a new position in shares of Franklin Resources during the third quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Finally, Larson Financial Group LLC lifted its holdings 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 worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 1,277 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 47.56% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on BEN shares. TD Cowen cut their target price on Franklin Resources from $20.00 to $18.50 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. UBS Group decreased their target price on shares of Franklin Resources from $24.00 to $21.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reiterated an “underperform” rating and set a $19.00 price objective (down from $20.00) on shares of Franklin Resources in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. Evercore ISI lowered their target price on Franklin Resources from $20.00 to $19.00 and set an “underperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, October 4th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded Franklin Resources from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 14th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and seven have given a hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $20.66.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Franklin Resources Inc sold 8,467 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, October 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $43.69, for a total value of $369,923.23. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 51,019 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,229,020.11. This trade represents a 14.23 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 24,024 shares of company stock worth $1,051,375. Company insiders own 24.13% of the company’s stock.

Franklin Resources Stock Performance

NYSE:BEN opened at $21.97 on Friday. The company has a 50-day moving average of $21.30 and a 200-day moving average of $21.60. The firm has a market cap of $11.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.55, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.43 and a beta of 1.39. The company has a current ratio of 1.63, a quick ratio of 1.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92. Franklin Resources, Inc. has a twelve month low of $18.94 and a twelve month high of $30.32.

Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, November 4th. The closed-end fund reported $0.59 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.60 by ($0.01). The business had revenue of $2.21 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.70 billion. Franklin Resources had a return on equity of 9.62% and a net margin of 5.48%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 11.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.84 EPS. Analysts forecast that Franklin Resources, Inc. will post 2.39 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Franklin Resources Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 10th. Investors of record on Monday, December 30th will be paid a $0.32 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 30th. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.83%. This is a boost from Franklin Resources’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.31. Franklin Resources’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 148.84%.

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.