Franklin Resources Inc. (BEN) declared preliminary assets under management (AUM) of $898.0 billion by its subsidiaries for Sep 2014. The company’s AUM registered a fall of 2.6% from $922.2 billion as of Aug 31, 2014. However, it grew 6.3% from $844.7 billion as of Sep 30, 2013.
Month-end total equity assets came in at $369.3 billion for Franklin, down 4.4% from the prior month, while it climbed 8.3% on a year-over-year basis. Of the total equity assets, around 70% were sourced internationally, while the remaining 30% came from the U.S.
Franklin’s total fixed income assets were $361.2 billion, falling 1% from Aug 2014 level, while inching up 0.5% from Sep 2013 level. Overall, tax-free assets accounted for only 20% of the fixed income assets, while the remaining 80% were taxable.
Franklin recorded $160.5 billion in hybrid assets, which fell 2.3% from $164.2 billion in the prior month, but grew 16.7% from $137.5 billion in the year-ago month. However, cash management funds increased 4.4% from $6.7 billion in the previous month and 6.1% from $6.6 billion in the prior-year month to $7.0 billion in the reported month.
Franklin's global footprint is a favorable strategic point as its AUM is well diversified. Further, the company is poised to benefit from its strong balance sheet. However, regulatory restrictions and sluggish economic growth could dent AUM improvement and increase costs in the near term.
Franklin currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). A better-ranked company in the same industry with a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy) is Janus Capital Group, Inc. (JNS).
Among other asset managers, Invesco Ltd. (IVZ) and Legg Mason Inc. (LM) are expected to release their preliminary AUM for Sep 2014, later this week.
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