Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN) Sees Large Drop in Short Interest

Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN) was the recipient of a large decline in short interest during the month of November. As of November 30th, there was short interest totalling 26,170,000 shares, a decline of 9.2% from the November 15th total of 28,820,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 4,150,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 6.3 days. Currently, 9.3% of the shares of the stock are short sold.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have recently commented on the stock. Barclays upped their price objective on shares of Franklin Resources from $19.00 to $21.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Monday, December 9th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut their price target on shares of Franklin Resources from $20.00 to $19.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. UBS Group lowered their price objective on shares of Franklin Resources from $24.00 to $21.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. The Goldman Sachs Group cut their target price on Franklin Resources from $23.75 to $21.25 and set a “sell” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, September 30th. Finally, StockNews.com raised Franklin Resources from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 14th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and seven have issued a hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Franklin Resources currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $20.66.

Franklin Resources Stock Down 2.6 %

Shares of BEN stock traded down $0.56 on Tuesday, hitting $21.34. The stock had a trading volume of 2,836,028 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,010,781. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $21.38 and its 200-day moving average is $21.57. The firm has a market capitalization of $11.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.81, a P/E/G ratio of 2.43 and a beta of 1.39. Franklin Resources has a 52-week low of $18.94 and a 52-week high of $30.32. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92, a quick ratio of 1.63 and a current ratio of 1.63.

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 analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.60 by ($0.01). Franklin Resources had a net margin of 5.48% and a return on equity of 9.62%. The firm had revenue of $2.21 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.70 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.84 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 11.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts expect that Franklin Resources will post 2.39 earnings per share for the current year.

Franklin Resources Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 10th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 30th will be issued a dividend of $0.32 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 30th. This is an increase from Franklin Resources’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.31. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.00%. Franklin Resources’s payout ratio is currently 148.84%.

Insider Activity at Franklin Resources

In other news, insider Franklin Resources Inc sold 8,467 shares of Franklin Resources stock in a transaction on Wednesday, October 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $43.69, for a total value of $369,923.23. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 51,019 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,229,020.11. The trade was a 14.23 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In the last quarter, insiders sold 24,024 shares of company stock valued at $1,051,375. 24.13% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Franklin Resources

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Franklin Resources in the third quarter valued at about $26,000. Altshuler Shaham Ltd bought a new position in Franklin Resources during the second quarter worth $27,000. Matrix Trust Co acquired a new position in Franklin Resources in the third quarter worth $29,000. Sentry Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in Franklin Resources during the second quarter valued at $30,000. Finally, Larson Financial Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of Franklin Resources by 254.4% during the third quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 1,779 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 1,277 shares during the period. 47.56% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.