Fines Dampen Franklin Resources' Earnings

Second quarter earnings at Franklin Resources slipped to $862.8 million from $874.6 million generated during the previous quarter due to the costs of settling charges with regulators, officials said.
Franklin in its most recent financial statement reported a $21.5 million charge stemming from regulators' investigations into the company's practice of compensating investment professionals who sell the company's funds. Regulatory settlement costs associated with market-timing violations also bit into $600 million of the company's profits during the first quarter, according to the statement.
Assets under management during the latest quarter ending on June 30 also slumped to $350.8 billion from $351.6 billion logged during the previous quarter while operating expenses rose by 7% from the previous quarter and 42% from the same quarter in 2003. Equity assets at the company edged slightly higher to 56% this quarter from 55% during the previous quarter.