TD Cowen Issues Positive Forecast for Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN) Stock Price

Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN) had its target price raised by research analysts at TD Cowen from $38.00 to $44.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Monday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has a “buy” rating on the closed-end fund’s stock. TD Cowen‘s target price points to a potential upside of 22.41% from the company’s previous close.

A number of other equities research analysts also recently weighed in on BEN. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods started coverage on Franklin Resources in a report on Wednesday, September 9th. They set a “hold” rating and a $38.00 price objective on the stock. Zacks Research cut Franklin Resources from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 25th. UBS Group assumed coverage on Franklin Resources in a research report on Wednesday, October 7th. They set a “buy” rating and a $40.00 target price for the company. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on Franklin Resources from $34.00 to $35.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, September 25th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on Franklin Resources from $34.00 to $35.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, October 12th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Franklin Resources has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $36.78.

Franklin Resources Price Performance

Shares of BEN stock traded up $2.21 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $35.94. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 883,041 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,694,872. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $32.58 and its two-hundred day moving average is $30.38. The company has a market cap of $18.26 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.12, a PEG ratio of 0.60 and a beta of 1.56. Franklin Resources has a 1-year low of $21.10 and a 1-year high of $36.28. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.22, a quick ratio of 1.48 and a current ratio of 1.48.

Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN) last issued its earnings results on Friday, November 6th. The closed-end fund reported $0.94 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.77 by $0.17. The business had revenue of $1.88 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.86 billion. Franklin Resources had a net margin of 11.42% and a return on equity of 12.59%. The firm’s revenue was up 3.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.67 EPS. On average, research analysts predict that Franklin Resources will post 3.20 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Franklin Resources

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. United Community Bank raised its stake in shares of Franklin Resources by 0.9% in the 2nd quarter. United Community Bank now owns 37,849 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $1,259,000 after purchasing an additional 320 shares during the period. Choreo LLC boosted its position in shares of Franklin Resources by 5.0% during the third quarter. Choreo LLC now owns 7,590 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $244,000 after buying an additional 360 shares during the period. Empirical Finance LLC boosted its position in shares of Franklin Resources by 3.7% during the second quarter. Empirical Finance LLC now owns 10,783 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $359,000 after buying an additional 380 shares during the period. Greenwich Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Franklin Resources by 0.3% during the second quarter. Greenwich Wealth Management LLC now owns 143,825 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $4,785,000 after buying an additional 389 shares during the period. Finally, Caldwell Trust Co grew its holdings in shares of Franklin Resources by 13.0% during the third quarter. Caldwell Trust Co now owns 3,399 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $109,000 after buying an additional 390 shares in the last quarter. 47.56% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Franklin Resources

Franklin Resources, Inc is a global investment management company that operates under the Franklin Templeton name. It offers investment products and services to individual investors, financial professionals, institutions and other clients, including mutual funds, exchange-traded funds and separately managed accounts.

The company invests across a range of asset classes and strategies, including equities, fixed income, multi-asset portfolios and alternative investments. Its services also include retirement solutions and wealth management.

Founded in 1947, Franklin Resources has grown through acquisitions, including its 2020 acquisition of Legg Mason.