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Franklin Resources, Inc. (BEN) vs Alphabet Inc. (GOOGL): Which Is the Better Buy in 2026?

As of 2026-06-19, BEN is fairly valued at $33, with a DCF intrinsic value of $37 and a margin of safety of 11%. GOOGL is overvalued at $368, with an intrinsic value of $94 and a margin of safety of -290%. Of the two, BEN has the wider margin of safety.

BEN
Franklin Resources, Inc.
$33.05
VS
GOOGL
Alphabet Inc.
$368.03

Rewards

BEN
  • ★PEG ratio of 0.41 suggests the stock is undervalued relative to its growth rate — paying less than 1x for each unit of earnings growth.
GOOGL
  • ★Alphabet Inc. has maintained ROIC above 15% for 4 consecutive years, indicating a durable competitive advantage.
  • ★Gross margin of 60.4% indicates strong pricing power — typical of businesses with significant intellectual property or brand strength.
  • ★Alphabet Inc. scores 89/100 on the Economic Moat Score (Wide Moat), with roic consistency as the strongest competitive dimension.

Risks

BEN
  • ⚠Buybacks have been poorly timed — 3 out of 4 years involved repurchases at relatively expensive valuations.
  • ⚠Trailing P/E of 25.2x is 30% above the historical average of 19.5x — the stock trades at a premium to its own history.
  • ⚠Altman Z-Score of 1.41 places the company in the distress zone — financial patterns resemble those of companies that experienced bankruptcy.
GOOGL
  • ⚠FCF yield of 1.6% is below 3%, meaning the market is pricing in substantial future growth to justify the current price.

Key Valuation Metrics

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BEN
GOOGL
Valuation
$-242.14M
Free Cash Flow
$73.27B
-1.41%
FCF Yield
1.63%
25.23
Trailing P/E
28.09
11.09
Forward P/E
25.39
Quality & Moat
6.81%
ROIC
20.98%
6.70%
ROE
38.88%
37.36%
Gross Margin
60.37%
0.41
PEG Ratio
1.47
Balance Sheet Safety
0.06
Net Debt / Equity
Net cash
N/A
Interest Coverage
N/A
0.48
Net Debt / EBITDA
-0.19
3.98%
Dividend Yield
0.24%
BEN: 4Ties: 1GOOGL: 7
BENGOOGL

Historical Fundamentals

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BEN

Price ÷ Earnings Per Share — how many years of current earnings you're paying for at today's price. Lower P/E may indicate undervaluation. The dashed forward point is the forward P/E — today's price ÷ analyst consensus EPS.

GOOGL

Price ÷ Earnings Per Share — how many years of current earnings you're paying for at today's price. Lower P/E may indicate undervaluation. The dashed forward point is the forward P/E — today's price ÷ analyst consensus EPS.

Price ÷ Earnings Per Share — how many years of current earnings you're paying for at today's price. Lower P/E may indicate undervaluation. The dashed forward point is the forward P/E — today's price ÷ analyst consensus EPS.

$1 Retained Earnings Test

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BEN
N/A
Net losses over 3 years — test not applicable
Company had negative cumulative retained earnings
Σ Retained
$-74.9M
Δ Market Cap
$-733.3M
Buffett's "$1 Test": For every $1 of earnings retained, has management created at least $1 of market value?
> $1 created per $1 retained = Value Creator · < $1 created = Value Destroyer
GOOGL
$9.18
created per $1 retained over 3 years
Exceptional Value Creator
Σ Retained
$288.67B
Δ Market Cap
+$2.65T
Buffett's "$1 Test": For every $1 of earnings retained, has management created at least $1 of market value?
> $1 created per $1 retained = Value Creator · < $1 created = Value Destroyer

Buffett's "$1 Test": For every $1 of earnings retained, has management created at least $1 of market value?
> $1 created per $1 retained = Value Creator · < $1 created = Value Destroyer

Discounted Cash Flow (DCF) Analysis

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BEN
10.8% Margin of Safety
Price is 10.8% below estimated fair value
Current Price: $33.05
Fair Value: $37.06
Strongly undervalued
Undervalued
Fairly valued
Overvalued
Strongly overvalued
GOOGL
289.6% Overvalued
Price is 289.6% above estimated fair value
Current Price: $368.03
Fair Value: $94.46
Strongly undervalued
Undervalued
Fairly valued
Overvalued
Strongly overvalued

Reverse DCF — Market-Implied Growth

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BEN

Requires positive FCF to compute implied growth rate.

GOOGL

What growth rate is the market pricing in at $368?

+22.9%
Market-Implied FCF Growth Rate

Market pricing in significantly higher growth than history — aggressive.

Economic Moat Score

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BEN
47/100
Narrow Moat
70+ Wide · 40-69 Narrow · <40 None

Narrow moat with reinvestment efficiency as the key competitive advantage. Improving roic consistency would strengthen the moat.

Composite score measuring competitive advantage durability across four dimensions: returns above cost of capital, pricing power stability, revenue predictability, and capital efficiency. Based on 4 years of fundamental data.
GOOGL
89/100
Wide Moat
70+ Wide · 40-69 Narrow · <40 None

Wide moat driven primarily by roic consistency. Reinvestment Efficiency is the area most vulnerable to competitive pressure.

Composite score measuring competitive advantage durability across four dimensions: returns above cost of capital, pricing power stability, revenue predictability, and capital efficiency. Based on 4 years of fundamental data.

Forensic Accounting

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BEN
-2.53
Unlikely Manipulator
Above -1.78 = likely manipulator · -2.22 to -1.78 = grey zone

M-Score Trend

Beneish's 8-variable model estimates the probability of earnings manipulation. An M-Score above -1.78 signals elevated risk — companies in this range have historically been 3-5× more likely to be manipulating earnings. Scores between -2.22 and -1.78 fall in a grey zone warranting further investigation.
GOOGL
-2.92
Unlikely Manipulator
Above -1.78 = likely manipulator · -2.22 to -1.78 = grey zone

M-Score Trend

Beneish's 8-variable model estimates the probability of earnings manipulation. An M-Score above -1.78 signals elevated risk — companies in this range have historically been 3-5× more likely to be manipulating earnings. Scores between -2.22 and -1.78 fall in a grey zone warranting further investigation.

Beneish's 8-variable model estimates the probability of earnings manipulation. An M-Score above -1.78 signals elevated risk — companies in this range have historically been 3-5× more likely to be manipulating earnings. Scores between -2.22 and -1.78 fall in a grey zone warranting further investigation.

Ownership Breakdown

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BEN
Insiders 48.5%Institutions 51.4%Retail & Other 0.1%
No. of Institutional Holders831
High insider ownership aligns management incentives with shareholders — a key signal in Buffett-style analysis. Institutional concentration can indicate smart-money conviction but also crowding risk.
GOOGL
Insiders 1.2%Institutions 80.8%Retail & Other 18.1%
No. of Institutional Holders7,263
High insider ownership aligns management incentives with shareholders — a key signal in Buffett-style analysis. Institutional concentration can indicate smart-money conviction but also crowding risk.

High insider ownership aligns management incentives with shareholders. Institutional concentration can indicate smart-money conviction but also crowding risk.

Insider Buying Activity

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BEN
0
Buys (3M)
2
Buys (12M)
Total value (12M): $2.13M
JOHNSON CHARLES B
Beneficial Owner of more than 10% of a Class of Security
$1.06M
@ $21.20 · 2025-11-20
JOHNSON CHARLES B
Beneficial Owner of more than 10% of a Class of Security
$1.07M
@ $21.49 · 2025-11-18
JOHNSON CHARLES B
Beneficial Owner of more than 10% of a Class of Security
$7,442
@ $17.72 · 2025-04-04
JOHNSON CHARLES B
Beneficial Owner of more than 10% of a Class of Security
$1.96M
@ $19.57 · 2025-03-04
JOHNSON CHARLES B
Beneficial Owner of more than 10% of a Class of Security
$1.91M
@ $19.08 · 2024-09-11
JOHNSON CHARLES B
Beneficial Owner of more than 10% of a Class of Security
$1.98M
@ $19.84 · 2024-08-29
JOHNSON JENNIFER M
Chief Executive Officer
$249,738
@ $19.66 · 2024-08-28
JOHNSON JENNIFER M
Chief Executive Officer
$396,021
@ $20.95 · 2024-08-23
JOHNSON CHARLES B
Beneficial Owner of more than 10% of a Class of Security
$4.56M
@ $22.80 · 2024-06-21
JOHNSON CHARLES B
Beneficial Owner of more than 10% of a Class of Security
$2.23M
@ $22.29 · 2024-06-18
Open market purchases · includes direct & indirect ownership · excludes option exercises
GOOGL
0
Buys (3M)
0
Buys (12M)
No open market insider purchases found.
Open market purchases · includes direct & indirect ownership · excludes option exercises

Open market purchases · includes direct & indirect ownership · excludes option exercises.

Insider Selling Activity

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BEN
0
Sells (3M)
0
Sells (12M)
JOHNSON CHARLES B
Beneficial Owner of more than 10% of a Class of Security
$7,379
@ $17.57 · 2025-04-04
Direct ownership only · excludes indirect, option exercises, planned (10b5-1) sales & derivatives
GOOGL
0
Sells (3M)
0
Sells (12M)
No open market insider sales found.
Direct ownership only · excludes indirect, option exercises, planned (10b5-1) sales & derivatives

Direct ownership only · excludes indirect, option exercises, planned (10b5-1) sales & derivatives.

🎭 Mr. Market's Mood

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BEN
FearGreed
😏Greed(66/100)

"Market is optimistic — be cautious and ensure you have a margin of safety"

Composite sentiment score based on 6 market signals. Inspired by Buffett's "Mr. Market" allegory — fear = potential opportunity, greed = potential risk. Must be used alongside fundamental analysis, not in isolation.
GOOGL
FearGreed
😐Neutral(58/100)

"Market is pricing this stock without strong emotion in either direction"

Composite sentiment score based on 6 market signals. Inspired by Buffett's "Mr. Market" allegory — fear = potential opportunity, greed = potential risk. Must be used alongside fundamental analysis, not in isolation.

Composite sentiment score based on market signals. Inspired by Buffett’s "Mr. Market" allegory — fear = potential opportunity, greed = potential risk. Must be used alongside fundamental analysis, not in isolation.

⚖️ Buffett Signal

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BEN
⚪Awaiting DCF Data

The Buffett Signal cross-references market sentiment with DCF valuation. Configure the DCF Analysis above to generate a signal.

DCF Margin of Safety: N/AMr. Market's Mood: Greed (66)
GOOGL
⚪Awaiting DCF Data

The Buffett Signal cross-references market sentiment with DCF valuation. Configure the DCF Analysis above to generate a signal.

DCF Margin of Safety: N/AMr. Market's Mood: Neutral (58)
View BEN Full AnalysisView GOOGL Full Analysis

Frequently Asked Questions: BEN vs GOOGL

Is Franklin Resources, Inc. or Alphabet Inc. more undervalued in 2026?▼

Based on our discounted cash flow model, BEN trades at a 10.8% margin of safety (intrinsic value $37 vs. price $33), compared to GOOGL's -289.6% margin of safety (intrinsic $94 vs. $368).

Which stock has a wider economic moat, Franklin Resources, Inc. or Alphabet Inc.?▼

GOOGL scores 89/100 (Wide moat), while BEN scores 47/100 (Narrow moat). The moat score measures competitive advantage durability across ROIC consistency, margin stability, revenue predictability, and reinvestment efficiency.

Is Franklin Resources, Inc. in financial distress?▼

BEN's Altman Z-Score of 1.4 places it in the Distress zone, signaling elevated bankruptcy risk. GOOGL scores 2.4 (Grey zone). The Altman Z-Score is a five-factor model that predicts insolvency within two years; scores below 1.81 indicate significant distress.

Which company has better free cash flow, Franklin Resources, Inc. or Alphabet Inc.?▼

Alphabet Inc. (GOOGL) generates a 1.6% free cash flow yield, compared to Franklin Resources, Inc.'s -1.4%. A higher FCF yield means the business converts more of its market value into cash that can be returned to shareholders or reinvested.

Which stock has higher return on invested capital, Franklin Resources, Inc. or Alphabet Inc.?▼

GOOGL earns 21.0% ROIC versus BEN's 6.8%. A higher ROIC means the company generates more profit per dollar of capital employed, a hallmark of durable competitive advantage in Buffett-style analysis.

Which dividend is safer, Franklin Resources, Inc.'s or Alphabet Inc.'s?▼

GOOGL's dividend earns a safety score of 88/100 (Very Safe), compared to BEN's 39/100 (Unsafe). GOOGL has raised its dividend for 1 consecutive years.