BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp Has $1.24 Million Position in Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN)

BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp raised its holdings in Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN) by 56.6% in the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 55,528 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock after acquiring an additional 20,077 shares during the quarter. BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp’s holdings in Franklin Resources were worth $1,241,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Power Corp of Canada lifted its stake in shares of Franklin Resources by 18,266.0% in the 1st quarter. Power Corp of Canada now owns 31,557,117 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $887,071,000 after purchasing an additional 31,385,293 shares during the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors raised its holdings in Franklin Resources by 17.9% during the fourth quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 26,652,644 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $793,983,000 after buying an additional 4,043,808 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Franklin Resources by 11.1% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 35,889,477 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $1,008,853,000 after buying an additional 3,592,943 shares during the last quarter. Marshall Wace LLP boosted its stake in shares of Franklin Resources by 517.5% during the 2nd quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 1,406,324 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $31,431,000 after acquiring an additional 1,178,594 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Los Angeles Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Franklin Resources by 2,322.5% during the 1st quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC now owns 868,984 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $24,427,000 after acquiring an additional 833,113 shares during the last quarter. 47.56% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Franklin Resources

In other Franklin Resources news, major shareholder Charles B. Johnson acquired 100,000 shares of Franklin Resources stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 29th. The stock was bought at an average cost 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 $1,769,890,529.28. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In other Franklin Resources news, major shareholder Charles B. Johnson bought 100,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 29th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $19.84 per share, with a total value of $1,984,000.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the insider now directly owns 89,208,192 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,769,890,529.28. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Jennifer M. Johnson purchased 18,900 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, August 23rd. The shares were acquired at an average price of $20.95 per share, with a total value of $395,955.00. Following the purchase, the chief executive officer now owns 216,900 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,544,055. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders have acquired 231,600 shares of company stock valued at $4,537,637 in the last 90 days. 24.13% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms recently weighed in on BEN. Wells Fargo & Company initiated coverage on Franklin Resources in a report on Thursday, September 12th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $20.00 target price for the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods restated an “underperform” rating and issued a $23.00 price objective on shares of Franklin Resources in a research note on Thursday, August 22nd. TD Cowen raised their target price on shares of Franklin Resources from $23.00 to $24.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, July 29th. BMO Capital Markets cut their target price on shares of Franklin Resources from $27.00 to $26.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, July 29th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft decreased their price target on shares of Franklin Resources from $24.00 to $23.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Monday, July 29th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and six have given a hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $23.00.

Franklin Resources Stock Performance

NYSE:BEN opened at $20.79 on Monday. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $21.18 and its 200-day moving average is $23.19. The company has a market cap of $10.94 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.88, a PEG ratio of 2.62 and a beta of 1.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93, a quick ratio of 1.71 and a current ratio of 1.71. Franklin Resources, Inc. has a 52-week low of $18.94 and a 52-week high of $30.32.

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

Franklin Resources Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 11th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 30th will be paid a dividend of $0.31 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 30th. This represents a $1.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.96%. Franklin Resources’s dividend payout ratio is currently 70.86%.

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.