Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN) Announces Quarterly Dividend of $0.33

by · The Cerbat Gem

Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN – Get Free Report) declared a quarterly dividend on Wednesday, December 17th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 30th will be paid a dividend of 0.33 per share by the closed-end fund on Friday, January 9th. This represents a c) dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 30th. This is a 3.1% increase from Franklin Resources’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.32.

Franklin Resources has increased its dividend payment by an average of 0.0%per year over the last three years and has raised its dividend annually for the last 45 consecutive years. Franklin Resources has a payout ratio of 56.6% indicating that its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Equities analysts expect Franklin Resources to earn $2.42 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $1.28 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 52.9%.

Franklin Resources Trading Up 2.8%

BEN traded up $0.66 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $24.33. 901,139 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,403,017. The stock has a market capitalization of $12.68 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.77, a PEG ratio of 1.55 and a beta of 1.47. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $22.71 and its 200 day simple moving average is $23.63. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.95, a quick ratio of 1.40 and a current ratio of 1.40. Franklin Resources has a one year low of $16.25 and a one year high of $26.08.

Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN – Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Friday, November 7th. The closed-end fund reported $0.67 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.57 by $0.10. Franklin Resources had a return on equity of 9.12% and a net margin of 5.98%.The business had revenue of $1.82 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.17 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.59 EPS. Franklin Resources’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts forecast that Franklin Resources will post 2.16 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on BEN. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Franklin Resources in a research report on Monday, December 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on Franklin Resources from $26.00 to $25.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, November 10th. BMO Capital Markets began coverage on shares of Franklin Resources in a research note on Friday, October 3rd. They set an “outperform” rating and a $26.00 target price for the company. Bank of America boosted their target price on shares of Franklin Resources from $19.00 to $22.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 2nd. Finally, Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of Franklin Resources from $20.00 to $22.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Friday, December 12th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have issued a Hold rating and five have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Franklin Resources presently has an average rating of “Reduce” and an average price target of $24.09.

Get Our Latest Stock Analysis on BEN

Franklin Resources Company Profile

(Get Free Report)

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.

See Also