Greenwich Wealth Management LLC Boosts Holdings in Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN)

Greenwich Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN) by 0.1% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 602,046 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock after purchasing an additional 776 shares during the quarter. Franklin Resources accounts for approximately 0.9% of Greenwich Wealth Management LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 18th biggest holding. Greenwich Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Franklin Resources were worth $12,216,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in BEN. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its stake in shares of Franklin Resources by 263.1% during the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 2,022,055 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $40,744,000 after acquiring an additional 1,465,148 shares in the last quarter. Amundi boosted its stake in shares of Franklin Resources by 62.9% during the 4th quarter. Amundi now owns 3,752,326 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $75,928,000 after acquiring an additional 1,449,210 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Franklin Resources by 44.7% during the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,998,574 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $60,421,000 after acquiring an additional 925,590 shares in the last quarter. Vest Financial LLC boosted its stake in shares of Franklin Resources by 32.1% during the 4th quarter. Vest Financial LLC now owns 2,923,399 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $59,316,000 after acquiring an additional 709,736 shares in the last quarter. Finally, State Street Corp boosted its stake in shares of Franklin Resources by 2.9% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 21,155,516 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $432,730,000 after acquiring an additional 599,045 shares in the last quarter. 47.56% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

BEN has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Barclays increased their target price on shares of Franklin Resources from $19.00 to $22.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. BMO Capital Markets increased their target price on shares of Franklin Resources from $20.00 to $23.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their target price on shares of Franklin Resources from $19.00 to $21.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of Franklin Resources from $20.50 to $24.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on shares of Franklin Resources from $21.00 to $19.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and eight have issued a hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $20.86.

Franklin Resources Stock Up 3.4 %

BEN stock opened at $19.56 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $10.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.09, a PEG ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 1.42. The company has a current ratio of 1.66, a quick ratio of 1.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89. Franklin Resources, Inc. has a 12 month low of $18.83 and a 12 month high of $28.15. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $20.08 and a two-hundred day moving average of $20.56.

Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 31st. The closed-end fund reported $0.59 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates 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 prior year, the business posted $0.65 earnings per share. As a group, analysts forecast that Franklin Resources, Inc. will post 2.16 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Franklin Resources Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 11th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be issued a dividend of $0.32 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 31st. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.55%. Franklin Resources’s dividend payout ratio is currently 196.92%.

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.