Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN) PT Lowered to $24.00 at Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft

Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN) had its price objective cut by stock analysts at Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft from $29.00 to $24.00 in a report released on Tuesday, Benzinga reports. The firm presently has a “hold” rating on the closed-end fund’s stock. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft’s price target would suggest a potential upside of 4.44% from the stock’s previous close.

Several other brokerages have also recently issued reports on BEN. UBS Group raised their target price on shares of Franklin Resources from $26.00 to $30.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 10th. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on shares of Franklin Resources from $24.00 to $25.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 17th. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded shares of Franklin Resources from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $24.00 to $30.00 in a research report on Monday, January 8th. BMO Capital Markets dropped their target price on shares of Franklin Resources from $30.00 to $27.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday. Finally, TD Cowen reduced their price target on Franklin Resources from $29.00 to $25.50 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and six have given a hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $26.00.

Franklin Resources Trading Down 1.7 %

Shares of BEN stock traded down $0.40 on Tuesday, hitting $22.98. 2,362,079 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,664,359. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.86, a quick ratio of 1.92 and a current ratio of 1.92. The stock has a market capitalization of $12.10 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.11, a P/E/G ratio of 1.31 and a beta of 1.40. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $26.79 and its 200 day simple moving average is $26.37. Franklin Resources has a one year low of $21.88 and a one year high of $30.32.

Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN) last released its earnings results on Monday, April 29th. The closed-end fund reported $0.56 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.57 by ($0.01). Franklin Resources had a net margin of 12.30% and a return on equity of 11.15%. The company had revenue of $2.15 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.66 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.61 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 11.7% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts forecast that Franklin Resources will post 2.52 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Vest Financial LLC boosted its stake in Franklin Resources by 17.0% during the first quarter. Vest Financial LLC now owns 1,389,887 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $39,070,000 after acquiring an additional 201,688 shares in the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its position in Franklin Resources by 7.6% in the 1st quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 356,668 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $10,026,000 after acquiring an additional 25,203 shares in the last quarter. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. boosted its position in shares of Franklin Resources by 11.9% during the first quarter. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. now owns 84,416 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $2,373,000 after buying an additional 8,956 shares during the last quarter. Yousif Capital Management LLC grew its position in Franklin Resources by 1.5% in the 1st quarter. Yousif Capital Management LLC now owns 294,930 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $8,290,000 after purchasing an additional 4,342 shares during the period. Finally, SlateStone Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in Franklin Resources during the first quarter valued at approximately $774,000. 47.56% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.