IFM Investors Pty Ltd Sells 3,124 Shares of Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN)

IFM Investors Pty Ltd reduced its position in shares of Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN) by 4.7% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 63,879 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock after selling 3,124 shares during the quarter. IFM Investors Pty Ltd’s holdings in Franklin Resources were worth $1,796,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Uncommon Cents Investing LLC raised its position in shares of Franklin Resources by 0.5% in the 1st quarter. Uncommon Cents Investing LLC now owns 169,755 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $4,772,000 after acquiring an additional 900 shares during the period. Abundance Wealth Counselors boosted its stake in Franklin Resources by 8.3% during the 1st quarter. Abundance Wealth Counselors now owns 26,298 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $739,000 after acquiring an additional 2,012 shares during the last quarter. Norden Group LLC acquired a new stake in Franklin Resources in the first quarter worth $990,000. State of Alaska Department of Revenue raised its holdings in Franklin Resources by 7.0% in the first quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 32,567 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $915,000 after purchasing an additional 2,125 shares during the period. Finally, Denali Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Franklin Resources during the first quarter worth $44,000. 47.56% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Franklin Resources Stock Down 0.4 %

BEN traded down $0.10 during trading on Friday, hitting $24.99. The company had a trading volume of 7,535,980 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,588,434. The company has a market capitalization of $13.16 billion, a PE ratio of 13.15, a PEG ratio of 1.31 and a beta of 1.40. Franklin Resources, Inc. has a one year low of $21.88 and a one year high of $30.32. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $26.87 and its 200 day moving average price is $26.37. The company has a quick ratio of 1.92, a current ratio of 1.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.86.

Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, January 29th. The closed-end fund reported $0.65 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.58 by $0.07. Franklin Resources had a net margin of 12.30% and a return on equity of 11.15%. The firm had revenue of $1.99 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.51 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.51 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 1.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts expect that Franklin Resources, Inc. will post 2.52 earnings per share for the current year.

Franklin Resources Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 12th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 28th were paid a $0.31 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 27th. This represents a $1.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.96%. Franklin Resources’s payout ratio is currently 65.26%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

BEN has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price target on shares of Franklin Resources from $27.00 to $30.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 30th. Wells Fargo & Company raised shares of Franklin Resources from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $24.00 to $30.00 in a research report on Monday, January 8th. StockNews.com cut shares of Franklin Resources from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 1st. UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of Franklin Resources from $26.00 to $30.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 10th. Finally, TD Cowen began coverage on shares of Franklin Resources in a research report on Thursday, January 4th. They set a “market perform” rating and a $32.00 price target on the stock. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and six have given a hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Franklin Resources has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $27.50.

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.