J.P. Morgan Downgrades Franklin Resources (BEN)

J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. is downgrading Franklin Resources BEN to Neutral from Overweight, and cut its price target to $117 from $134. In a research report sent to clients, J.P. Morgan notes, "We downgrade Franklin to Neutral from Overweight. We see definitive, albeit limited, data of a rebound in equity fund sales and a decline in fixed income sales. With nearly 50% of its assets in fixed income securities, including a portion of hybrid fund assets, we see potential for Franklin to perform in line with or even underperform more equity focused peers. We lower estimates due to fixed income redemption projections for F2011 and we lower our Dec '11 target to $117.00." Shares of BEN lost $1.71 yesterday to close at $114.60 on Friday.