Mather Group LLC. Boosts Stock Holdings in Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN)

Mather Group LLC. lifted its holdings in shares of Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN) by 3.6% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 622,215 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock after acquiring an additional 21,592 shares during the quarter. Mather Group LLC.’s holdings in Franklin Resources were worth $12,625,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of BEN. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Franklin Resources during the third quarter worth $26,000. Matrix Trust Co bought a new stake in shares of Franklin Resources during the 3rd quarter valued at $29,000. Larson Financial Group LLC lifted its holdings in Franklin Resources by 254.4% during 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 in the last quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group bought a new position in Franklin Resources in the 3rd quarter worth about $39,000. Finally, Northwest Investment Counselors LLC purchased a new position in Franklin Resources during the 3rd quarter valued at about $41,000. 47.56% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Franklin Resources Stock Down 6.9 %

Shares of NYSE BEN opened at $20.72 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92, a current ratio of 1.63 and a quick ratio of 1.63. Franklin Resources, Inc. has a one year low of $18.83 and a one year high of $28.61. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $20.86 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $20.97. The stock has a market capitalization of $10.85 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.87, a PEG ratio of 1.51 and a beta of 1.42.

Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 31st. The closed-end fund reported $0.59 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.56 by $0.03. Franklin Resources had a return on equity of 9.41% and a net margin of 4.32%. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.65 EPS. As a group, analysts expect that Franklin Resources, Inc. will post 2.19 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Franklin Resources Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 10th. Investors of record on Monday, December 30th were issued a dividend of $0.32 per share. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.18%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 30th. This is an increase from Franklin Resources’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.31. Franklin Resources’s payout ratio is currently 196.93%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

BEN has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on shares of Franklin Resources from $18.00 to $19.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Friday, December 20th. The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded shares of 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 note on Monday, January 6th. UBS Group boosted their price target on shares of Franklin Resources from $19.00 to $23.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday. BMO Capital Markets increased their price objective on Franklin Resources from $20.00 to $23.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Monday. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reduced their target price on Franklin Resources from $20.00 to $19.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and eight have given a hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $20.86.

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.