The Goldman Sachs Group Upgrades Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN) to “Neutral”

Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN) was upgraded by The Goldman Sachs Group from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research note issued to investors on Monday, MarketBeat Ratings reports. The firm presently has a $22.00 target price on the closed-end fund’s stock, up from their prior target price of $21.00. The Goldman Sachs Group’s price objective would suggest a potential upside of 11.22% from the stock’s current price.

BEN has been the topic of several other research reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft dropped their price target on Franklin Resources from $20.00 to $19.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. TD Cowen cut their target price on Franklin Resources from $20.00 to $18.50 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on Franklin Resources from $18.00 to $19.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Friday, December 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on Franklin Resources from $22.00 to $21.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reiterated an “underperform” rating and issued a $19.00 target price (down from $20.00) on shares of Franklin Resources in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and eight have assigned a hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Franklin Resources currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $20.73.

Franklin Resources Trading Down 1.1 %

Shares of Franklin Resources stock opened at $19.78 on Monday. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $21.38 and a 200-day simple moving average of $21.32. The firm has a market cap of $10.36 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.00, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.38 and a beta of 1.41. Franklin Resources has a fifty-two week low of $18.94 and a fifty-two week high of $29.41. The company has a quick ratio of 1.63, a current ratio of 1.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92.

Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, November 4th. The closed-end fund reported $0.59 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.60 by ($0.01). Franklin Resources had a net margin of 5.48% and a return on equity of 9.62%. The business had revenue of $2.21 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.70 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.84 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts forecast that Franklin Resources will post 2.39 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Franklin Resources Inc sold 7,900 shares of Franklin Resources stock in a transaction on Friday, October 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $43.71, for a total transaction of $345,309.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 36,519 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,596,245.49. This trade represents a 17.79 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders have sold a total of 24,024 shares of company stock worth $1,051,375 in the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 22.90% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Franklin Resources

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in BEN. TD Asset Management Inc raised its position in Franklin Resources by 20.3% during the second quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 96,312 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $2,153,000 after acquiring an additional 16,236 shares in the last quarter. National Bank of Canada FI lifted its stake in shares of Franklin Resources by 22.8% in the 2nd quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 86,746 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $1,920,000 after purchasing an additional 16,125 shares during the last quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. increased its position in Franklin Resources by 11.5% during the second quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,215,412 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $27,164,000 after buying an additional 125,262 shares during the last quarter. Candriam S.C.A. raised its holdings in Franklin Resources by 2.8% during the second quarter. Candriam S.C.A. now owns 48,186 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $1,077,000 after buying an additional 1,310 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Savant Capital LLC lifted its position in shares of Franklin Resources by 321.1% in the second quarter. Savant Capital LLC now owns 74,094 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $1,656,000 after buying an additional 56,500 shares during the last quarter. 47.56% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Franklin Resources Company 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.