Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. Has $10.01 Million Holdings in Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN)

Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. lowered its position in Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN) by 1.8% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 493,444 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock after selling 9,139 shares during the period. Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. owned 0.09% of Franklin Resources worth $10,012,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Virtu Financial LLC acquired a new position in Franklin Resources in the third quarter valued at $880,000. FORA Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of Franklin Resources in the 3rd quarter valued at about $1,857,000. Swedbank AB boosted its position in shares of Franklin Resources by 78.3% during the 3rd quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 62,076 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $1,251,000 after purchasing an additional 27,259 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its stake in Franklin Resources by 44.7% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,998,574 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $60,421,000 after purchasing an additional 925,590 shares during the period. Finally, Twelve Points Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in Franklin Resources by 20.5% in the fourth quarter. Twelve Points Wealth Management LLC now owns 159,738 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $3,241,000 after purchasing an additional 27,169 shares in the last quarter. 47.56% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

BEN has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. UBS Group increased their price target on Franklin Resources from $19.00 to $23.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on shares of Franklin Resources from $18.00 to $19.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Friday, December 20th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted 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. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their target price on Franklin Resources from $19.00 to $21.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on Franklin Resources from $20.00 to $23.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and eight have given a hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Franklin Resources presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $20.86.

Franklin Resources Stock Up 1.1 %

Shares of NYSE:BEN opened at $20.08 on Tuesday. The business’s 50 day moving average is $20.13 and its 200 day moving average is $20.57. Franklin Resources, Inc. has a 12-month low of $18.83 and a 12-month high of $28.15. The stock has a market cap of $10.55 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.89, a PEG ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 1.42. The company has a quick ratio of 1.66, a current ratio of 1.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89.

Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 31st. The closed-end fund reported $0.59 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping 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 quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.65 EPS. On average, sell-side 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 disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 11th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be paid a $0.32 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 31st. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.37%. Franklin Resources’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 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.