Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd Sells 71,821 Shares of Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN)

Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd lowered its stake in shares of Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN) by 46.9% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 81,410 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock after selling 71,821 shares during the quarter. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd’s holdings in Franklin Resources were worth $1,640,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of BEN. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Franklin Resources during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $26,000. Altshuler Shaham Ltd purchased a new stake in Franklin Resources in the second quarter worth $27,000. Matrix Trust Co purchased a new stake in Franklin Resources in the third quarter worth $29,000. Sentry Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in Franklin Resources during the second quarter valued at $30,000. Finally, Larson Financial Group LLC lifted its position in 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 valued at $36,000 after buying an additional 1,277 shares during the period. 47.56% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages recently issued reports on BEN. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft decreased their price target on shares of Franklin Resources from $20.00 to $19.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. Evercore ISI lowered their target price on shares of Franklin Resources from $20.00 to $19.00 and set an “underperform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, October 4th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods restated an “underperform” rating and issued a $19.00 price target (down previously from $20.00) on shares of Franklin Resources in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. StockNews.com upgraded Franklin Resources from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 14th. Finally, Barclays increased their target price on Franklin Resources from $19.00 to $21.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Monday. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and seven have given a hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Franklin Resources has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $20.39.

Franklin Resources Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:BEN opened at $22.38 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92, a quick ratio of 1.63 and a current ratio of 1.63. The firm has a market cap of $11.72 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.99, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.38 and a beta of 1.39. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $21.10 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $21.62. Franklin Resources, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $18.94 and a fifty-two week high of $30.32.

Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN) last released its quarterly earnings data 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 net margin of 5.48% and a return on equity of 9.62%. The company had revenue of $2.21 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.70 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.84 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts expect that Franklin Resources, Inc. will post 2.39 earnings per share for the current year.

Franklin Resources Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 10th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 30th will be paid a $0.32 dividend. This is an increase from Franklin Resources’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.31. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.72%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 30th. Franklin Resources’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 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 dated Wednesday, October 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $43.69, for a total transaction of $369,923.23. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 51,019 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,229,020.11. The trade was a 14.23 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 24,024 shares of company stock worth $1,051,375. 24.13% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Franklin Resources 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.