Kennondale Capital Management LLC Invests $1.59 Million in Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN)

Kennondale Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 78,525 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock, valued at approximately $1,593,000. Franklin Resources comprises about 1.3% of Kennondale Capital Management LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 19th biggest position.

Other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Franklin Resources by 44.5% during the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 1,641 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 505 shares during the last quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC raised its position 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 buying an additional 1,277 shares during the period. Brooklyn Investment Group purchased a new position in shares of Franklin Resources in the 3rd quarter worth $39,000. Principal Securities Inc. raised its position in shares of Franklin Resources by 561.1% in the 4th quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 1,957 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $40,000 after buying an additional 1,661 shares during the period. Finally, Assetmark Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Franklin Resources in the 3rd quarter worth $46,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 47.56% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

BEN has been the topic of several research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on Franklin Resources from $21.00 to $19.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on Franklin Resources from $18.00 to $19.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Friday, December 20th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised Franklin Resources from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $21.00 to $22.00 in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price objective on Franklin Resources from $19.00 to $21.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, UBS Group raised their price objective on Franklin Resources from $19.00 to $23.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Four analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and eight have assigned a hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $20.86.

Franklin Resources Stock Up 1.4 %

Shares of NYSE BEN opened at $19.79 on Tuesday. Franklin Resources, Inc. has a 1 year low of $18.83 and a 1 year high of $28.15. The firm has a market cap of $10.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.45, a PEG ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 1.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89, a quick ratio of 1.66 and a current ratio of 1.66. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $20.08 and its 200-day simple moving average is $20.57.

Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN) last announced its earnings results on Friday, January 31st. The closed-end fund reported $0.59 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.56 by $0.03. Franklin Resources had a return on equity of 9.45% and a net margin of 4.32%. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.65 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Franklin Resources, Inc. will post 2.16 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Franklin Resources Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 11th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be given a dividend of $0.32 per share. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.47%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 31st. Franklin Resources’s payout ratio is 196.92%.

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.