Altrius Capital Management Inc Boosts Stock Position in Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN)

Altrius Capital Management Inc grew its stake in shares of Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN) by 23.4% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 217,553 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock after buying an additional 41,247 shares during the period. Altrius Capital Management Inc’s holdings in Franklin Resources were worth $4,384,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Franklin Resources during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Altshuler Shaham Ltd bought a new stake in Franklin Resources during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Matrix Trust Co bought a new stake in Franklin Resources during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Sentry Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in Franklin Resources during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Finally, Headlands Technologies LLC bought a new stake in Franklin Resources during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $32,000. 47.56% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Franklin Resources

In other Franklin Resources news, insider Franklin Resources Inc sold 7,900 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, October 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $43.71, for a total value of $345,309.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 36,519 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,596,245.49. This represents a 17.79 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, major shareholder Charles B. Johnson bought 100,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 29th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $19.84 per share, with a total value of $1,984,000.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the insider now directly owns 89,208,192 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,769,890,529.28. This trade represents a 0.11 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders acquired 231,600 shares of company stock worth $4,537,637 and sold 24,024 shares worth $1,051,375. 24.13% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts recently issued reports on BEN shares. StockNews.com raised Franklin Resources from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their price objective on Franklin Resources from $23.75 to $21.25 and set a “sell” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, September 30th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reduced their price objective on Franklin Resources from $20.00 to $19.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on Franklin Resources from $21.00 to $19.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, October 18th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reaffirmed an “underperform” rating and issued a $19.00 price objective (down previously from $20.00) on shares of Franklin Resources in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and seven have assigned a hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $20.20.

Franklin Resources Trading Down 0.4 %

Shares of Franklin Resources stock traded down $0.08 on Friday, reaching $21.50. The company had a trading volume of 285,576 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,009,257. The firm has a market cap of $11.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.14, a P/E/G ratio of 2.32 and a beta of 1.38. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92, a current ratio of 1.39 and a quick ratio of 1.71. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $20.42 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $21.82. Franklin Resources, Inc. has a 1 year low of $18.94 and a 1 year high of $30.32.

Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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). Franklin Resources had a net margin of 5.48% and a return on equity of 9.62%. The business had revenue of $2.21 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.70 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.84 EPS. Franklin Resources’s revenue was up 11.3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts predict that Franklin Resources, Inc. will post 2.4 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Franklin Resources Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, October 11th. Investors of record on Monday, September 30th were issued a dividend of $0.31 per share. This represents a $1.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.77%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, September 30th. Franklin Resources’s payout ratio is currently 144.19%.

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.