Franklin Resources Inc. (BEN) rallied 6.7% in pre-market trading on Friday, following the release of its fiscal first-quarter 2025 results that topped expectations, boosted by inflows across asset classes and higher investment management fees.

For the quarter ended December 31, 2024, the global investment management firm reported:

- Adjusted earnings per share of $0.59, beating the consensus estimate of $0.53.
- Operating revenues of $2.25 billion, above the $1.74 billion consensus.
- Long-term net outflows of $50 billion, including $67.9 billion outflows from Western Asset Management. Excluding that unit, long-term net inflows were $18 billion across equity, fixed income, alternative, and multi-asset solutions.

Franklin's assets under management (AUM) stood at $1.58 trillion at quarter-end, up 8% from a year ago. Investment management fees, the company's largest revenue source, climbed 9% to $1.8 billion, driven by higher AUM levels.

CEO Jenny Johnson said, "Our first fiscal quarter results demonstrated progress across key growth areas, enabling us to meet the evolving needs of our clients." She highlighted strong inflows in alternatives, ETFs, and the firm's custom indexing platform Canvas.

While challenges persist for Western Asset, Johnson stated the company will integrate select corporate functions to create efficiencies while ensuring investment team autonomy.