Franklin's July AUM Benefits From Favorable Markets

Franklin Resources, Inc. BEN reported its preliminary assets under management of $1.66 trillion as of Jul 31, 2024. This reflected an increase of 1% from the prior month's level.

The improvement in AUM balance was primarily due to the impact of positive markets, partially offset by long-term net outflows.

BEN recorded equity assets of $603.7 billion, which increased 1.5% from the previous month. Further, fixed income AUM of $571.3 billion at the end of July 2024 increased 1.2% from the previous month. Multi-asset AUM was $171.7 billion, which rose 2.1% from June 2024. Also, alternative assets increased marginally to $254.9 billion from the prior month's level.

However, the cash management balance was $61.5 billion, down 4.7% from the previous month's level.

Franklin's efforts to diversify business through buyouts, solid AUM balance and a strong distribution platform will aid its top line. We project AUM and revenues to witness a compound annual growth rate of 6.5% and 4.6%, respectively, by fiscal 2026. However, elevated expenses and volatility in investment management fees, which bring in the majority of its revenues, are near-term concerns.

Over the past six months, shares of BEN have plunged 19.6% against the industry's 2% growth.

Image Source: Zacks Investment Research

Currently, BEN carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold).

Performance of Other Asset Managers

T. Rowe Price Group, Inc. announced its preliminary AUM of $1.59 trillion as of Jul 31, 2024. The figure reflected a sequential increase of 1.1%. TROW experienced net inflows of $2 billion in July 2024.

Cohen & Steers, Inc. reported its preliminary AUM of $84.6 billion as of Jul 31, 2024. This reflected a rise of 4.8% from the prior month's level.

The increase in CNS' AUM balance was driven by the market appreciation of $41 billion, partially offset by net outflows of $45 million and distributions of $153 million.

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