Janney Montgomery Scott LLC Has $11.83 Million Stock Holdings in Franklin Resources, Inc. $BEN

Janney Montgomery Scott LLC cut its stake in Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN) by 3.5% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 500,897 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock after selling 18,340 shares during the quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC owned approximately 0.10% of Franklin Resources worth $11,831,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Prana Capital Management LP grew its stake in shares of Franklin Resources by 135.8% in the 3rd quarter. Prana Capital Management LP now owns 860,762 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $19,909,000 after buying an additional 495,747 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its stake in shares of Franklin Resources by 5.8% during the 3rd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 10,065,908 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $232,833,000 after purchasing an additional 553,184 shares during the last quarter. Board of the Pension Protection Fund raised its holdings in shares of Franklin Resources by 413.8% during the 4th quarter. Board of the Pension Protection Fund now owns 66,800 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $1,596,000 after purchasing an additional 53,800 shares in the last quarter. Kettle Hill Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Franklin Resources by 45.4% during the third quarter. Kettle Hill Capital Management LLC now owns 747,430 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $17,288,000 after buying an additional 233,230 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Picton Mahoney Asset Management bought a new stake in Franklin Resources during the third quarter worth approximately $1,948,000. 47.56% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts recently commented on the stock. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of Franklin Resources from $31.00 to $34.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, June 26th. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Franklin Resources from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, June 22nd. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price target on Franklin Resources from $30.50 to $34.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 29th. Barclays set a $31.00 price objective on Franklin Resources and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 29th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded Franklin Resources from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Sunday, June 14th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have issued a Buy rating, four have given a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $30.67.

Franklin Resources Stock Down 0.0%

NYSE BEN opened at $34.05 on Friday. Franklin Resources, Inc. has a one year low of $21.10 and a one year high of $34.55. The firm has a market cap of $17.69 billion, a PE ratio of 25.99, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.88 and a beta of 1.54. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.10, a current ratio of 1.87 and a quick ratio of 1.87. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $31.45 and its 200 day simple moving average is $27.54.

Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The closed-end fund reported $0.71 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.55 by $0.16. Franklin Resources had a net margin of 8.12% and a return on equity of 10.58%. The business had revenue of $1.75 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.70 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.47 earnings per share. Franklin Resources’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Franklin Resources, Inc. will post 2.79 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Franklin Resources Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 10th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 29th will be given a dividend of $0.33 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 29th. This represents a $1.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.9%. Franklin Resources’s dividend payout ratio is currently 100.76%.

About Franklin Resources

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.