JPMorgan Chase & Co. Lowers Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN) Price Target to $19.00

Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN) had its price target trimmed by JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $21.00 to $19.00 in a research note published on Thursday morning,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a neutral rating on the closed-end fund’s stock.

A number of other research analysts have also weighed in on the company. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on Franklin Resources from $22.50 to $20.50 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday. Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of Franklin Resources from $19.00 to $21.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Monday, December 9th. UBS Group lowered their target price on shares of Franklin Resources from $24.00 to $21.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reduced their price objective on shares of Franklin Resources from $20.00 to $19.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reissued an “underperform” rating and set a $19.00 target price (down previously from $20.00) on shares of Franklin Resources in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and eight have assigned a hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $20.36.

Franklin Resources Stock Down 1.0 %

Shares of Franklin Resources stock opened at $19.42 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $10.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.59, a PEG ratio of 2.06 and a beta of 1.41. Franklin Resources has a one year low of $18.83 and a one year high of $28.61. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92, a current ratio of 1.63 and a quick ratio of 1.63. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $21.21 and its 200 day moving average is $21.20.

Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN) last issued its earnings results on Monday, November 4th. The closed-end fund reported $0.59 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.60 by ($0.01). The firm had revenue of $2.21 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.70 billion. Franklin Resources had a return on equity of 9.62% and a net margin of 5.48%. Franklin Resources’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.84 earnings per share. Equities research analysts anticipate that Franklin Resources will post 2.38 EPS for the current year.

Franklin Resources Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 10th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 30th were issued a dividend of $0.32 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 30th. This is an increase from Franklin Resources’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.31. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.59%. Franklin Resources’s dividend payout ratio is 148.84%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Franklin Resources

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Franklin Resources by 50.6% in the 2nd quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 97,950 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $2,189,000 after buying an additional 32,904 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its holdings in shares of Franklin Resources by 1.7% in the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 3,183,950 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $71,171,000 after acquiring an additional 54,063 shares during the period. Amalgamated Bank grew its position in shares of Franklin Resources by 2.5% in the second quarter. Amalgamated Bank now owns 83,401 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $1,864,000 after purchasing an additional 2,059 shares in the last quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC raised its stake in shares of Franklin Resources by 57.1% during the 2nd quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 870,318 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $19,432,000 after purchasing an additional 316,211 shares during the period. Finally, Altrius Capital Management Inc boosted its stake in Franklin Resources by 21.5% in the 2nd quarter. Altrius Capital Management Inc now owns 176,306 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $3,940,000 after purchasing an additional 31,186 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 47.56% of the company’s stock.

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.