I started investigating Franklin Resources this last
summer because I rolled over the major portion of
my IRA funds into their "family of funds." I found that they were growing by leaps and bounds. Many
acquisitions were being completed and they had launched some very aggresive marketing campaigns. You
cannot read the financial section of any newspaper without seeing their adds. Michael Price, their star
money manager has gotten a lot of attention also. What you may not be aware of is that they aggresively
market their U.S. funds to asian customers-- you can
imagine how attractive this must be given the poor investments in Asia now.

I am a member of the UAIC (united association of investments clubs) and I receive the Better Investing
Magazine. I have read several articles which recommend "Templeton" (Franklin Templeton) foreign
funds. I have found that they truly experts in foreign investing. People who fully research their
performance (5 Star by Morning Star on most funds) realize that the modest load is worth the value received. The capital gains received on their TEMFX
fund recently nicely offset the losses from the recent
downturn over the last few months. (no capital gains tax problem with in IRA)

I ran a full analysis using the Stock Selection Guide
software, while applying my conservative judgement, and came to the conclusion that the stock was a good
buy at recent prices. So I bought a small amount in order to venture into financials (I hold Jefferies also and it has performed well). This is a good diversification move I feel, as I am heavy on the computer technology side.

In comparison to some of the its competitors, I find
BEN to be quite promising while being of medium risk
(I checked out AC, STT, LEH, and others). I recommend
BEN, check out the financials carefully, and I think
you will see an oportunity here.