Nicholls Matthew 4

What Happened

Matthew Nicholls, Co‑President, CFO & COO of Franklin Resources Inc. (BEN), was granted 229,850 shares on 2026-07-21 at a reported grant value of $32.63 per share, totaling $7,500,006. The filing classifies the transaction as an award/grant (code A) — an acquisition of equity rather than an open‑market purchase.

Key Details

• Transaction date: 2026-07-21; filing date (Form 4): 2026-07-23 (appears timely under the 2‑business‑day rule).
• Shares granted: 229,850; reported grant price/value: $32.63 per share; total value: $7,500,006.
• Transaction type: Award/Grant (code A) — likely part of compensation/long‑term incentives, not a market trade.
• Shares owned after transaction: not specified in the provided data.
• Footnote: the filing notes that of the securities beneficially owned, 450,879 shares represent unvested restricted stock units.
• No 10b5‑1, tax‑withholding, or other special plan indicators were provided in the summary data supplied.

Context

Equity awards like this are typically compensation that vest over time (the footnote references unvested restricted stock units). They are different from open‑market purchases or insider sales and do not, by themselves, indicate immediate buying pressure or selling intent. For retail investors, grants are useful to track executive compensation and potential future insider holdings but are not the same signal as an executive buying shares with personal cash.