Barclays Cuts Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN) Price Target to $17.00

Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN) had its target price reduced by research analysts at Barclays from $22.00 to $17.00 in a research note issued on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an “underweight” rating on the closed-end fund’s stock. Barclays‘s price objective indicates a potential downside of 3.55% from the company’s previous close.

BEN has been the topic of a number of other reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on Franklin Resources from $21.00 to $19.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 16th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on shares of Franklin Resources from $24.00 to $20.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their price target on shares of Franklin Resources from $21.50 to $19.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Monday. BMO Capital Markets raised their price objective on shares of Franklin Resources from $20.00 to $23.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, TD Cowen decreased their price target on Franklin Resources from $20.00 to $17.50 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 9th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and eight have given a hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $18.96.

Franklin Resources Stock Performance

Shares of BEN opened at $17.63 on Wednesday. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $19.38 and a 200-day moving average of $20.30. The company has a market cap of $9.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.12, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 1.36. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89, a quick ratio of 1.66 and a current ratio of 1.66. Franklin Resources has a 1 year low of $16.25 and a 1 year high of $25.69.

Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN) last posted its earnings results on Friday, January 31st. The closed-end fund reported $0.59 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.56 by $0.03. Franklin Resources had a net margin of 4.32% and a return on equity of 9.45%. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.65 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Franklin Resources will post 2.16 earnings per share for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Franklin Resources

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in BEN. CoreCap Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Franklin Resources by 147.1% during the fourth quarter. CoreCap Advisors LLC now owns 1,238 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 737 shares in the last quarter. GeoWealth Management LLC boosted its position in Franklin Resources by 350.4% during the 4th quarter. GeoWealth Management LLC now owns 1,261 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 981 shares during the period. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC grew its stake in Franklin Resources by 44.5% during the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 1,641 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 505 shares in the last quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC acquired a new position in shares of Franklin Resources in the 4th quarter valued at about $34,000. Finally, Principal Securities Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Franklin Resources by 561.1% during the fourth quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 1,957 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $40,000 after purchasing an additional 1,661 shares during the period. 47.56% of the stock is currently 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.