Virtu Financial LLC Has $412,000 Stake in Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN)

Virtu Financial LLC cut its position in Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN) by 53.5% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 20,308 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock after selling 23,385 shares during the quarter. Virtu Financial LLC’s holdings in Franklin Resources were worth $412,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Franklin Resources by 0.8% in the third quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 69,585 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $1,402,000 after acquiring an additional 572 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its position in Franklin Resources by 44.7% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,998,574 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $60,421,000 after buying an additional 925,590 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Trust N.A. bought a new stake in shares of Franklin Resources during the third quarter worth $301,000. Citigroup Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Franklin Resources by 24.8% during the third quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 615,925 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $12,411,000 after buying an additional 122,300 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cerity Partners LLC lifted its stake in shares of Franklin Resources by 30.6% in the 3rd quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 461,129 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $9,292,000 after acquiring an additional 108,156 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 47.56% of the company’s stock.

Franklin Resources Stock Performance

BEN stock opened at $19.87 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $10.44 billion, a PE ratio of 30.57, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 1.42. The company has a current ratio of 1.66, a quick ratio of 1.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $20.14 and a 200-day moving average price of $20.57. Franklin Resources, Inc. has a 1-year low of $18.83 and a 1-year high of $28.15.

Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN) last issued its earnings results on Friday, January 31st. The closed-end fund reported $0.59 earnings per share 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 period in the prior year, the company earned $0.65 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Franklin Resources, Inc. will post 2.16 earnings per share for the current year.

Franklin Resources Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 11th. Investors of record on Monday, March 31st will be given a dividend of $0.32 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 31st. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.44%. Franklin Resources’s payout ratio is presently 196.92%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on the company. UBS Group upped their target price on Franklin Resources from $19.00 to $23.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded shares of Franklin Resources from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and raised their price objective for the company from $21.00 to $22.00 in a report on Monday, January 6th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on shares of Franklin Resources from $20.00 to $23.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Barclays upped their price target on shares of Franklin Resources from $19.00 to $22.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on shares of Franklin Resources from $21.00 to $19.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and eight have given a hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $20.86.

Franklin Resources 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.