Goldman Sachs Group Inc. Sells 1,006,945 Shares of Franklin Resources, Inc. $BEN

Goldman Sachs Group Inc. trimmed its holdings in Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN) by 15.1% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 5,645,590 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock after selling 1,006,945 shares during the period. Goldman Sachs Group Inc.’s holdings in Franklin Resources were worth $134,873,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in BEN. Danske Bank A S bought a new position in shares of Franklin Resources in the fourth quarter valued at $26,000. Rakuten Securities Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Franklin Resources by 277.0% in the fourth quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 1,150 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 845 shares in the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Franklin Resources by 129.1% in the third quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,313 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 740 shares in the last quarter. Leonteq Securities AG bought a new position in shares of Franklin Resources in the fourth quarter valued at $30,000. Finally, Larson Financial Group LLC lifted its stake in shares of Franklin Resources by 48.1% in the fourth quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 1,392 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 452 shares in the last quarter. 47.56% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Franklin Resources Stock Performance

NYSE BEN opened at $31.39 on Tuesday. Franklin Resources, Inc. has a 52-week low of $21.10 and a 52-week high of $32.47. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $28.58 and a 200 day simple moving average of $26.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.10, a quick ratio of 1.87 and a current ratio of 1.87. The company has a market capitalization of $16.31 billion, a PE ratio of 23.96, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.82 and a beta of 1.55.

Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 28th. The closed-end fund reported $0.71 earnings per share (EPS) 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 quarter last year, the company posted $0.47 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 8.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts predict that Franklin Resources, Inc. will post 2.74 EPS for the current year.

Franklin Resources Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 10th. Investors of record on Monday, June 29th will be issued a dividend of $0.33 per share. This represents a $1.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.2%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 29th. Franklin Resources’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 100.76%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have weighed in on BEN shares. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Franklin Resources from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday. Morgan Stanley raised shares of Franklin Resources from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and raised their price target for the company from $21.00 to $31.00 in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. Evercore reissued an “underperform” rating and set a $32.00 price target on shares of Franklin Resources in a research report on Monday. TD Cowen reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Franklin Resources in a research report on Thursday. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of Franklin Resources from $28.00 to $31.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 29th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have issued a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Franklin Resources currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $30.00.

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.