Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN) to Issue Dividend Increase – $0.32 Per Share

Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN) declared a quarterly dividend on Wednesday, December 4th,RTT News reports. Investors of record on Monday, December 30th will be paid a dividend of 0.32 per share by the closed-end fund on Friday, January 10th. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.65%. This is a positive change from Franklin Resources’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.31.

Franklin Resources has decreased its dividend payment by an average of 6.2% per year over the last three years. Franklin Resources has a payout ratio of 51.5% meaning its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Research analysts expect Franklin Resources to earn $2.59 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $1.24 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 47.9%.

Franklin Resources Trading Up 1.2 %

Shares of Franklin Resources stock opened at $22.67 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92, a current ratio of 1.63 and a quick ratio of 1.63. Franklin Resources has a 1 year low of $18.94 and a 1 year high of $30.32. The company has a market capitalization of $11.87 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.36, a P/E/G ratio of 2.43 and a beta of 1.39. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $21.00 and a 200 day moving average price of $21.66.

Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, November 4th. The closed-end fund reported $0.59 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.60 by ($0.01). The company had revenue of $2.21 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.70 billion. Franklin Resources had a return on equity of 9.62% and a net margin of 5.48%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.84 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Franklin Resources will post 2.39 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have commented on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reaffirmed an “underperform” rating and issued a $19.00 target price (down from $20.00) on shares of Franklin Resources in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered their target price 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. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price 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. UBS Group lowered their target price on shares of Franklin Resources from $24.00 to $21.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of Franklin Resources from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 14th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and seven have given a hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Franklin Resources currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $20.20.

Insider Activity at Franklin Resources

In related news, insider Franklin Resources Inc sold 7,657 shares of Franklin Resources stock in a transaction on Monday, October 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $43.90, for a total transaction of $336,142.30. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 65,862 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,891,341.80. The trade was a 10.41 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, major shareholder Charles B. Johnson bought 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 acquisition, 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 position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 24,024 shares of company stock worth $1,051,375. 24.13% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.