Yousif Capital Management LLC Increases Holdings in Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN)

Yousif Capital Management LLC raised its stake in Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN) by 0.8% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 290,588 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,338 shares during the quarter. Yousif Capital Management LLC owned about 0.06% of Franklin Resources worth $8,657,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Blue Trust Inc. grew its position in Franklin Resources by 240.5% in the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 882 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 623 shares in the last quarter. Peoples Bank KS acquired a new position in Franklin Resources in the 3rd quarter worth $25,000. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV purchased a new position in Franklin Resources in the 4th quarter valued at about $31,000. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV grew its stake in shares of Franklin Resources by 149.1% during the fourth quarter. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV now owns 1,111 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 665 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Tobam increased its position in shares of Franklin Resources by 2,170.0% during the fourth quarter. Tobam now owns 1,135 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $34,000 after acquiring an additional 1,085 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 47.56% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

BEN has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. BMO Capital Markets increased their price target on Franklin Resources from $27.00 to $30.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 30th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reduced their target price on Franklin Resources from $30.00 to $28.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 30th. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on Franklin Resources from $24.00 to $25.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 17th. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded shares of Franklin Resources from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and increased their price objective for the company from $24.00 to $30.00 in a research note on Monday, January 8th. Finally, UBS Group increased their price objective on shares of Franklin Resources from $26.00 to $30.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 10th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and six have assigned a hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $27.50.

Franklin Resources Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE BEN opened at $25.35 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.92, a current ratio of 1.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.86. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $26.96 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $26.33. Franklin Resources, Inc. has a 52-week low of $21.88 and a 52-week high of $30.32. The stock has a market capitalization of $13.35 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.34, a P/E/G ratio of 1.33 and a beta of 1.40.

Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, January 29th. The closed-end fund reported $0.65 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.58 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $1.99 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.51 billion. Franklin Resources had a return on equity of 11.15% and a net margin of 12.30%. The business’s revenue was up 1.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.51 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Franklin Resources, Inc. will post 2.52 earnings per share for the current year.

Franklin Resources Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 12th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 28th were paid a $0.31 dividend. This represents a $1.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.89%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 27th. Franklin Resources’s payout ratio is 65.26%.

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.