Franklin Resources, Inc. $BEN Stock: Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. Trims Position

Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. lowered its position in Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN) by 18.9% in the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 152,845 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock after selling 35,708 shares during the quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc.’s holdings in Franklin Resources were worth $4,909,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. United Community Bank increased its holdings in shares of Franklin Resources by 0.9% during the 2nd quarter. United Community Bank now owns 37,849 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $1,259,000 after buying an additional 320 shares during the last quarter. Choreo LLC lifted its stake 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 valued at $244,000 after acquiring an additional 360 shares during the period. Empirical Finance LLC lifted its stake 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 valued at $359,000 after acquiring an additional 380 shares during the period. Greenwich Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in Franklin Resources by 0.3% in the second quarter. Greenwich Wealth Management LLC now owns 143,825 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $4,785,000 after acquiring an additional 389 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Lido Advisors LLC increased its position in Franklin Resources by 4.0% in the first quarter. Lido Advisors LLC now owns 10,194 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $244,000 after purchasing an additional 395 shares during the period. 47.56% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have issued reports on BEN shares. Barclays restated a “mixed” rating on shares of Franklin Resources in a research report on Wednesday, October 14th. TD Cowen decreased their target price on Franklin Resources from $40.00 to $38.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, October 12th. Evercore restated an “underperform” rating and set a $35.00 target price on shares of Franklin Resources in a research report on Friday, July 10th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Franklin Resources in a research note on Monday, August 31st. Finally, UBS Group started coverage on shares of Franklin Resources in a research report on Wednesday, October 7th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $40.00 price target on the stock. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $35.89.

Franklin Resources Stock Up 5.1%

BEN stock traded up $1.63 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $33.84. 7,203,101 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,711,410. The company has a market cap of $17.19 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.02, a P/E/G ratio of 0.57 and a beta of 1.56. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $32.58 and its 200-day moving average price is $30.38. The company has a quick ratio of 1.48, a current ratio of 1.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.22. Franklin Resources, Inc. has a 52 week low of $21.10 and a 52 week high of $36.28.

Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, November 6th. The closed-end fund reported $0.94 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.77 by $0.17. The firm had revenue of $1.88 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.86 billion. Franklin Resources had a net margin of 8.72% and a return on equity of 11.55%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 3.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.67 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Franklin Resources, Inc. will post 2.91 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Franklin Resources Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, October 9th. Investors of record on Wednesday, September 30th were issued a $0.33 dividend. This represents a $1.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.9%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, September 30th. Franklin Resources’s dividend payout ratio is currently 89.80%.

Franklin Resources News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Franklin Resources this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Adjusted earnings were $0.94 per share, above analyst expectations of roughly $0.77–$0.78 and up from $0.67 a year earlier. Revenue of $1.88 billion also topped estimates of $1.86 billion and increased 3.9% year over year. Article: Franklin Templeton Q4 Earnings and Revenues Beat Estimates
• Positive Sentiment: Reports attributed the results to higher revenue, year-over-year growth in assets under management, robust long-term net inflows and lower operating expenses—indicators that support earnings momentum. Article: Franklin Q4 Earnings Beat Estimates on Higher Revenues, AUM Rises Year Over Year

Franklin Resources Profile

Franklin Resources, Inc, operating under the Franklin Templeton name, is a global investment management organization headquartered in San Mateo, California. The company provides investment solutions to individuals, financial professionals, institutions, and other clients worldwide.

Its products and services include mutual funds, exchange-traded funds, separately managed accounts, institutional portfolios, and alternative investment strategies. Through its investment teams and specialist affiliates, Franklin Templeton offers capabilities across equities, fixed income, multi-asset strategies, private markets, real assets, and other areas of asset management.

Franklin Resources was founded in 1947 by Rupert H.