Quantum Portfolio Management LLC Purchases New Position in Franklin Resources, Inc. $BEN

Quantum Portfolio Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN) during the 1st quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund acquired 39,851 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock, valued at approximately $941,000.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Prana Capital Management LP increased its position 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. Board of the Pension Protection Fund lifted its holdings in Franklin Resources by 413.8% during the fourth quarter. Board of the Pension Protection Fund now owns 66,800 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $1,596,000 after acquiring an additional 53,800 shares in the last quarter. Kettle Hill Capital Management LLC lifted 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 worth $17,288,000 after acquiring an additional 233,230 shares in the last quarter. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd acquired a new position in Franklin Resources in the first quarter valued at about $6,254,000. Finally, Aquatic Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Franklin Resources in the third quarter worth about $5,285,000. Institutional investors own 47.56% of the company’s stock.

Franklin Resources Trading Down 2.5%

NYSE BEN opened at $33.50 on Thursday. Franklin Resources, Inc. has a 52 week low of $21.10 and a 52 week high of $34.92. 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 stock’s 50 day moving average price is $32.00 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $27.84. The stock has a market capitalization of $17.41 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.57, a PEG ratio of 0.89 and a beta of 1.54.

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

Franklin Resources Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 10th. Investors of record on Monday, June 29th will be given a $0.33 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 29th. This represents a $1.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.9%. Franklin Resources’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 100.76%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have recently commented on BEN. Weiss Ratings raised Franklin Resources from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 3rd. Barclays set a $31.00 target price on Franklin Resources and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 29th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on shares of Franklin Resources from $31.00 to $34.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, June 26th. Evercore reiterated an “underperform” rating and issued a $32.00 price target on shares of Franklin Resources in a report on Monday, June 8th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised shares of Franklin Resources from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Sunday, June 14th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have given a Buy rating, four have given a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Franklin Resources has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $30.67.

Franklin Resources 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.