Cadence Bank Grows Stock Position in Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN)

Cadence Bank grew its position in shares of Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN) by 67.9% during the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 401,128 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock after purchasing an additional 162,257 shares during the period. Cadence Bank owned approximately 0.08% of Franklin Resources worth $8,083,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Franklin Resources during the 3rd quarter valued at $26,000. Altshuler Shaham Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Franklin Resources during the second quarter valued at about $27,000. Matrix Trust Co purchased a new stake in shares of Franklin Resources during the third quarter worth about $29,000. Sentry Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Franklin Resources during the second quarter worth about $30,000. Finally, Larson Financial Group LLC boosted its holdings in Franklin Resources by 254.4% in the third quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 1,779 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $36,000 after purchasing an additional 1,277 shares during the last quarter. 47.56% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Franklin Resources Trading Down 2.2 %

NYSE:BEN opened at $22.23 on Wednesday. Franklin Resources, Inc. has a 12-month low of $18.94 and a 12-month high of $30.32. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92, a current ratio of 1.63 and a quick ratio of 1.63. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $20.78 and a 200 day simple moving average of $21.71. The firm has a market capitalization of $11.64 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.85, a P/E/G ratio of 2.45 and a beta of 1.38.

Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, November 4th. The closed-end fund reported $0.59 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.60 by ($0.01). The firm had revenue of $2.21 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.70 billion. Franklin Resources had a return on equity of 9.62% and a net margin of 5.48%. The firm’s revenue was up 11.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.84 EPS. Equities research analysts predict that Franklin Resources, Inc. will post 2.4 EPS for the current year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on BEN shares. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on Franklin Resources from $19.00 to $19.50 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. 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 report on Tuesday, November 5th. UBS Group cut their target price on shares of Franklin Resources from $24.00 to $21.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on Franklin Resources from $21.00 to $19.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, October 18th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded Franklin Resources from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, November 14th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and seven have assigned a hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $20.20.

Insider Buying and Selling at Franklin Resources

In related news, insider Franklin Resources Inc sold 7,657 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, October 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $43.90, for a total value of $336,142.30. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 65,862 shares in the company, valued at $2,891,341.80. This represents a 10.41 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, major shareholder Charles B. Johnson bought 100,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 11th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $19.08 per share, for a total transaction of $1,908,000.00. Following the purchase, the insider now owns 89,308,192 shares in the company, valued at $1,704,000,303.36. This trade represents a 0.11 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 24,024 shares of company stock worth $1,051,375. 24.13% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.