With a market capitalization of $16.1 billion, Franklin Resources, Inc. (BEN) is a global investment management firm headquartered in San Mateo, California. The company provides investment services to individual investors, institutions, pension funds, sovereign wealth funds, and financial advisors across equities, fixed income, alternatives, ETFs, and multi-asset strategies.
Shares of the leading asset management company have outperformed the broader market considerably over the past year. BEN has increased 49% over this time frame, while the broader S&P 500 Index ($SPX) has rallied 30.6%. On a YTD basis, Franklin Resources stock climbed 30%, surpassing $SPX’s 8.1% rally.
Narrowing the focus, BEN has surpassed the iShares U.S. Financial Services ETF’s (IYG) 8.7% gain over the past year and 6% dip in 2026.
On Apr. 28, Franklin released its FY2026 Q2 earnings, and its shares popped 6.9%. Operating revenue rose 9% year over year to $2.29 billion, supported by higher investment management fees, stronger performance fees, and growth in average AUM. Adjusted net income climbed 51% to $384.5 million and $0.71 per share. Operationally, Franklin continued benefiting from its diversification strategy into higher-growth areas such as private markets, ETFs, alternative credit, and digital assets.
For the current fiscal year, ending in September, Street expects BEN’s EPS to improve 22.1% year over year to $2.71. Franklin Resources’ earnings surprise history is stellar. It beat or matched the consensus estimate in each of the last four quarters.
The consensus rating among the 12 analysts covering BEN stock is a “Hold.” This is derived from three “Moderate Buys,” six “Holds”, one “Moderate Sell,” and two “Strong Sells.”
This configuration has been consistent over the past months.
On May 6, Morgan Stanley upgraded Franklin Resources from “Underweight” to “Equalweight” and raised its price target to $31 from $21, citing improving business momentum and easing company-specific headwinds. The firm believes Franklin’s shift toward higher-growth areas and stabilizing fund flows are helping offset ongoing industry challenges such as fee compression and the move toward lower-fee investment products.
While the stock currently trades above the mean price target of $30.18, the Street-high target of $37 represents an upside potential of 19.2%.
On the date of publication, Kritika Sarmah did not have (either directly or indirectly) positions in any of the securities mentioned in this article. All information and data in this article is solely for informational purposes. For more information please view the Barchart Disclosure Policy here.
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