Public Sector Pension Investment Board Buys 711,347 Shares of Franklin Resources, Inc. $BEN

Public Sector Pension Investment Board increased its position in Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN) by 1,109.0% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 775,490 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock after buying an additional 711,347 shares during the period. Public Sector Pension Investment Board’s holdings in Franklin Resources were worth $17,937,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Azora Capital LP bought a new position in Franklin Resources in the second quarter worth approximately $76,051,000. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Franklin Resources in the 2nd quarter worth $60,618,000. Holocene Advisors LP acquired a new stake in Franklin Resources in the 2nd quarter valued at $51,384,000. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC acquired a new stake in Franklin Resources in the 3rd quarter valued at $32,293,000. Finally, Natixis increased its stake in Franklin Resources by 6,959.8% during the 2nd quarter. Natixis now owns 584,414 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $13,938,000 after purchasing an additional 576,136 shares in the last quarter. 47.56% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Franklin Resources Price Performance

Shares of NYSE BEN opened at $27.03 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $14.08 billion, a PE ratio of 25.03, a PEG ratio of 0.84 and a beta of 1.46. The company has a quick ratio of 1.86, a current ratio of 1.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.01. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $25.22 and its 200-day moving average price is $24.22. Franklin Resources, Inc. has a twelve month low of $16.25 and a twelve month high of $28.32.

Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 30th. The closed-end fund reported $0.70 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.55 by $0.15. The company had revenue of $1.75 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.23 billion. Franklin Resources had a return on equity of 9.58% and a net margin of 6.97%.Franklin Resources’s revenue was up 3.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.59 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Franklin Resources, Inc. will post 2.16 EPS for the current year.

Franklin Resources Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 10th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 31st will be paid a $0.33 dividend. This represents a $1.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.9%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 31st. Franklin Resources’s payout ratio is presently 122.22%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

BEN has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Evercore lifted their price objective on shares of Franklin Resources from $26.00 to $28.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a report on Monday, February 2nd. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on Franklin Resources from $21.00 to $22.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 3rd. Barclays boosted their price objective on Franklin Resources from $22.00 to $25.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Thursday, January 15th. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Franklin Resources in a report on Monday, December 29th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on Franklin Resources from $26.00 to $25.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Monday, November 10th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and four have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and an average target price of $25.89.

Franklin Resources Company Profile

Franklin Resources, Inc, doing business as Franklin Templeton, is a global investment management organization that offers a wide range of asset management solutions to institutional and individual investors. The firm’s core focus is on delivering active portfolio management across equities, fixed income, multi-asset strategies and alternative investments. Franklin Templeton’s product lineup includes mutual funds, exchange-traded funds (ETFs), closed-end funds, separately managed accounts and sub-advisory services designed to meet varying risk-return objectives and income needs.

Founded in 1947 by Rupert H.