Swedbank AB Purchases 27,259 Shares of Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN)

Swedbank AB grew its position in Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN) by 78.3% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 62,076 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock after purchasing an additional 27,259 shares during the quarter. Swedbank AB’s holdings in Franklin Resources were worth $1,251,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of BEN. AQR Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Franklin Resources by 250.7% in the second quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 2,450,190 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $54,664,000 after acquiring an additional 1,751,587 shares during the last quarter. Marshall Wace LLP grew its stake in shares of Franklin Resources by 517.5% in the second quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 1,406,324 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $31,431,000 after acquiring an additional 1,178,594 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Franklin Resources by 44.7% in 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 acquiring an additional 925,590 shares during the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Franklin Resources by 110.3% in the second quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 1,623,236 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $36,279,000 after acquiring an additional 851,442 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Squarepoint Ops LLC grew its stake in shares of Franklin Resources by 325.1% in the second quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC now owns 906,270 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $20,255,000 after acquiring an additional 693,074 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 47.56% of the company’s stock.

Franklin Resources Stock Up 2.2 %

BEN opened at $22.70 on Thursday. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $20.82 and its 200-day simple moving average is $21.72. 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, Inc. has a twelve month low of $18.94 and a twelve month high of $30.32. The firm has a market cap of $11.89 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.40, a PEG ratio of 2.45 and a beta of 1.38.

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

Insider Transactions at Franklin Resources

In related news, major shareholder Charles B. Johnson purchased 100,000 shares of Franklin Resources stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 11th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $19.08 per share, for a total transaction of $1,908,000.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 89,308,192 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,704,000,303.36. This represents a 0.11 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, insider Franklin Resources Inc sold 7,900 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, October 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $43.71, for a total transaction of $345,309.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 36,519 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,596,245.49. This trade represents a 17.79 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 24,024 shares of company stock valued at $1,051,375. 24.13% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on BEN. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered their price objective 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 on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Franklin Resources from $19.00 to $19.50 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. Morgan Stanley decreased their price target on shares of Franklin Resources from $21.00 to $19.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, October 18th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their price target on shares of Franklin Resources from $23.75 to $21.25 and set a “sell” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, September 30th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and seven have issued a hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Franklin Resources currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $20.20.

About Franklin Resources

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.