Franklin Resources (BEN) 10-K2022 FY Annual report

This Annual Report on Form 10‑K (“Annual Report”) and the documents incorporated by reference herein may include forward-looking statements that reflect our current views with respect to future events and financial performance. Such statements are provided under the “safe harbor” protection of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements include all statements that do not relate solely to historical or current facts and generally can be identified by words or phrases written in the future tense and/or preceded by words such as “anticipate,” “believe,” “could,” “depends,” “estimate,” “expect,” “intend,” “likely,” “may,” “plan,” “potential,” “seek,” “should,” “will,” “would,” or other similar words or variations thereof, or the negative thereof, but these terms are not the exclusive means of identifying such statements.

While forward-looking statements are our best prediction at the time that they are made, you should not rely on them and are cautioned against doing so. Forward-looking statements are based on our current expectations and assumptions regarding our business, the economy and other possible future conditions. Because forward-looking statements relate to the future, they are subject to inherent uncertainties, risks and changes in circumstances that are difficult to predict. They are neither statements of historical fact nor guarantees or assurances of future performance. Factors or events that could cause our actual results to differ may emerge from time to time, and it is not possible for us to predict all of them.

If a circumstance occurs after the date of this Annual Report that causes any of our forward-looking statements to be inaccurate, whether as a result of new information, future developments or otherwise, we undertake no obligation to announce publicly the change to our expectations, or to make any revision to our forward-looking statements, to reflect any change in assumptions, beliefs or expectations, or any change in events, conditions or circumstances upon which any forward-looking statement is based, unless required by law.

Franklin Resources, Inc. (“Franklin”) is a holding company with subsidiaries operating under our Franklin Templeton® and/or subsidiary brand names. Franklin’s common stock is traded on the New York Stock Exchange (the “NYSE”) under the ticker symbol “BEN” and is included in the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index. In this Annual Report, Franklin and its subsidiaries are collectively referred to as the “Company,” and words such as “we,” “us,” “our” and similar terms refer to the Company. We have one operating segment, investment management and related services.

We are a global investment management organization with $1,297.4 billion in assets under management (“AUM”) as of September 30, 2022. Our mission is to help people all over the world achieve the most important milestones of their lives through investment management expertise, wealth management and technology solutions. Through our specialist investment managers, we offer investment specialization bringing extensive capabilities across our fixed income, equity, alternative and multi-asset products. For 75 years, we have been committed to providing clients with exceptional investment management services and have developed a globally diversified business, including through strategic acquisitions.

We provide our investment management and related services to retail, institutional and high-net-worth investors in jurisdictions worldwide. We deliver our investment capabilities through a variety of products and vehicles and multiple points of access, including directly to investors and through financial intermediaries. Our investment products include our sponsored funds, as well as institutional and high-net-worth separate accounts, retail separately managed account programs, sub-advised products, and other investment vehicles. Our funds include registered funds (including exchange-traded funds, or “ETFs”) and unregistered funds. Related services include fund administration, sales and distribution, and shareholder servicing. Our sales and distribution services include distribution-related financial technology. We may perform services directly or through third parties. We also provide sub-advisory services to certain investment products sponsored by other companies that may be sold to investors under the brand names of those other companies or on a co-branded basis.

We offer our clients the combined experience of our investment professionals with expertise across asset classes and a sharp focus on managing risk. We are committed to delivering strong investment performance for our clients, and to offering a broad range of strategies and drawing on our diverse experiences and perspectives gained through our long history in the investment management business. We know that success demands smart and effective business innovation, solutions and technologies, and we remain focused on investment excellence, innovating to meet evolving client goals, and building strong partnerships by delivering superior client service. We continue to focus on the long-term investment performance of our investment products and on providing high quality service to our clients.

The business and regulatory environments in which we operate globally remain complex, uncertain and subject to change. We are subject to various laws, rules and regulations globally that impose restrictions, limitations, registration, reporting and disclosure requirements on our business, and add complexity to our global compliance operations. Incorporated herein by reference is certain financial information about our segment and geographic areas contained in Note 18 – Segment and Geographic Information in the notes to consolidated financial statements in Item 8 of Part II of this Annual Report.

Our business is conducted through our subsidiaries, including our specialist investment managers. Our specialist investment managers include subsidiaries registered with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) as investment advisers under the Investment Advisers Act of 1940 (the “Advisers Act”), as well as subsidiaries registered as investment adviser equivalents in jurisdictions including Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, Hong Kong, Ireland, India, Japan, Luxembourg, Malaysia, Mexico, Singapore, Switzerland, South Korea, Commonwealth of The Bahamas, the United Arab Emirates and the United Kingdom (“U.K.”).

Our U.S.-registered funds and most of our non-U.S.-registered funds operate as independent companies subject to the supervision and oversight of the funds’ own boards of directors or trustees. Our registered open-end funds, or mutual funds, continuously offer their shares to investors. Our registered closed-end funds issue a set number of shares to investors in a public offering which are traded on a public stock exchange. Our investment managers manage a fund’s portfolio of securities in accordance with the fund’s stated objectives. To support the funds’ operations, our subsidiaries either provide or arrange for the investment and other management, shareholder servicing and administrative services required by the funds. We outsource various administration, technology, transfer agency and other services for our funds to third-party providers. An investor may purchase shares of a mutual fund directly from us or through a broker-dealer, financial adviser, bank or other similar financial intermediary that provides investment advice to the investor, or an investor may purchase shares of a closed-end fund or ETF on the stock exchange where the fund is traded. Financial intermediaries may earn fees and commissions and receive other compensation with respect to fund shares sold to investors.

See “Assets under Management” under Item 7, Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations, of this Annual Report for additional information about our AUM. Broadly speaking, other than

Our specialist investment managers include: Benefit Street Partners, Brandywine Global, Clarion Partners, ClearBridge Investments, Fiduciary Trust International, Franklin Equity Group, Franklin Mutual Series, Franklin Templeton Emerging Markets Equity, Franklin Templeton Fixed Income, Franklin Templeton Global Private Equity, Franklin Templeton Investment Solutions, K2 Advisors, Lexington Partners, Martin Currie, O’Shaughnessy Asset Management, Royce Investment Partners, Templeton Global Equity Group, Templeton Global Macro and Western Asset Management.

We are committed to partnering closely with our clients to understand their challenges and aspirations, and drawing on our investment capabilities and resources to offer and/or design the right investment solutions for them. We distribute and market globally our different capabilities under our brand names through various subsidiaries and multiple points of access, including directly to investors and through financial intermediaries. We primarily engage new institutional business through our relationships with pension, defined contribution and management consultants, direct sales efforts and additional mandates from our existing client relationships, as well as from our responses to requests for proposals. We also market and distribute our products through various subsidiaries to institutional investors with separate accounts. A few of our subsidiaries also serve as direct marketing broker-dealers for institutional investors for certain of our private funds, and some of our private funds may utilize third-party placement agents. Our services also include management of our ETF platforms. Our ETF platforms include smart beta and actively managed ETFs, as well as additional lower fee passive ETF products. ETFs trade like stocks, fluctuate in market value and may trade at prices above or below the ETF’s net asset value.

Our specialist investment managers provide investment management services pursuant to agreements in effect with each of our investment products and/or clients, including products for which we provide sub-advisory services. Investment management fees are generally determined as a percentage of AUM pursuant to such contractual arrangements. Our investment management services include services to accounts for which we have full investment discretion and to accounts for which we have no investment discretion. Our services include fundamental investment research and valuation analyses, including original economic, political, industry and company research, and analyses of suppliers, customers and competitors. Our management fee on an account varies with the types of services that we provide for the account, among other things.

For our U.S. mutual funds, the board of directors or trustees of each fund and our management personnel regularly review the investment management fee structures for the funds in light of fund performance, the level and range of services provided, industry conditions and other relevant factors. Most of our investment management agreements between our subsidiaries and our U.S. mutual funds must be renewed each year after an initial two-year term, and must be specifically approved at least annually by a vote of each fund’s board of directors or trustees as a whole and separately by a majority of its directors or trustees who are not interested persons of the fund under the Investment Company Act of 1940 (the “Investment Company Act”), or by a vote of the holders of a majority of the fund’s outstanding voting securities. In addition, our U.S. agreements generally may be terminated by either party without penalty after prior written notice.

Our non-U.S. mutual funds, private funds, institutional and high-net-worth separate accounts, and the products for which we provide sub-advisory services, are typically subject to various termination rights and/or renewal provisions, which often provide for termination upon relatively short notice with little or no penalty. Investment management fees are at times waived or voluntarily reduced when, for example, a new fund/account is established, and then increased to contractual levels within an established timeline or as net asset values reach certain levels.

Similar arrangements exist with the distribution of our non-U.S. mutual funds where, generally, our subsidiary that distributes the funds receives maintenance fees from the funds and pays commissions and certain other fees to financial advisers, banks and other intermediaries.

We primarily derive our fund sales through third-party broker-dealers, banks, investment advisers and other financial intermediaries. Because we rely on third-party distribution and sales channels to sell our products, we do not control the ultimate investment recommendations given by them to clients. Such financial intermediaries may recommend competing products.

Due to our international presence and varied product mix, it is difficult to assess our market position relative to other investment managers on a worldwide basis, but we believe that we are one of the more widely diversified investment managers based in the U.S. We believe that our fixed income, equity, alternative and multi-asset asset mix, coupled with our global presence, will serve our competitive needs well over the long term. We continue to focus on the long-term performance of our investment products, service to clients and extensive marketing activities through our strong broker-dealer and other financial institution distribution network as well as with high-net-worth and institutional clients.

The establishment of new investment management firms and continuous development of investment products increases the competition that we face. Many of our competitors have long-standing and established relationships with broker-dealers, investment advisers and their clients, and some have affiliated brokerage businesses. Others have focused on, offer and market specific product lines that provide strong competition to certain of our asset classes. In addition, consolidation in the financial services industry has created stronger competitors, some with greater financial resources and broader distribution channels than our own.

With our global operations, certain of our subsidiaries are registered with or licensed by various U.S. and/or non-U.S. regulators, and our funds are subject to various U.S. and/or non-U.S. laws. In particular, we are subject to various securities, compliance, corporate governance, disclosure, privacy, anti-bribery and anti-corruption, anti-money laundering, anti-terrorist financing, and economic, trade and sanctions laws and regulations, both domestically and internationally, as well as to various cross-border rules and regulations, such as the anti-bribery and anti-corruption rules under the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act of 1977 (“FCPA”) and the data protection rules under the General Data Protection Regulation (“GDPR”) of the European Union (“EU”). We are subject to sanctions programs administered by the Office of Foreign Assets Control of the U.S. Department of Treasury (“USDT”), as well as sanctions programs adopted and administered by non-U.S. jurisdictions where our services and products are offered. Our subsidiaries with custody of client assets or accounts are also subject to the applicable laws and regulations of U.S. states and other non-U.S. jurisdictions regarding the reporting and escheatment of unclaimed or abandoned property. We also must comply with complex and changing tax regimes in the jurisdictions where we operate our business.

Failure to comply with applicable U.S. and non-U.S. laws, regulations, rules, codes, notices, directives, guidelines, orders, circulars and/or conditions in the various jurisdictions where we operate could result in a wide range of disciplinary actions against us, our subsidiaries and/or our business. Breaches of applicable laws and rules could result in regulatory

See Item 7, Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations, of this Annual Report, for financial information about our business, including certain regulatory financial impacts disclosed therein.

As a global investment management organization, certain of our subsidiaries are also subject to the rules and regulations of various U.S. regulatory and self-regulatory organizations, including the SEC, FINRA, the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (“CFTC”), the National Futures Association, the U.S. Department of Justice (“DOJ”), the U.S. Department of Labor, and the USDT. Our non-U.S. operations also may be subject to regulation by U.S. regulators, including the SEC, the CFTC and the DOJ (for example with respect to the FCPA).

Certain of our subsidiaries are registered with the SEC under the Advisers Act and/or the CFTC, and many of our funds are registered with the SEC under the Investment Company Act. These registrations, licenses and authorizations impose numerous obligations, as well as detailed operational requirements, on such subsidiaries and funds. The Advisers Act imposes numerous obligations on our registered investment adviser subsidiaries, including record keeping, operating and marketing requirements, disclosure obligations and prohibitions against fraudulent activities. The Investment Company Act imposes similar obligations on the registered investment companies advised by our subsidiaries.

At an enterprise level, we use employee surveys to understand sentiment and engagement in the organization. At a team level, our performance management system supports ongoing, active discussion about goals and objectives. We also host live forums for leaders to engage directly with employees to help reinforce our culture of open feedback. Our employees have access to a valuable set of equitable and competitive total rewards, which consists of a mix of monetary and non-monetary rewards designed to recognize their time, talents and results.

We believe that our ability to attract, develop and cultivate a sense of belonging and retain a diverse, highly skilled workforce is important to our long-term success and that creating and maintaining all aspects of diversity, including backgrounds and perspectives, makes us a better place to work and a more resilient business. To accomplish this, we have developed strategies and initiatives to diversify talent within our organization. We consider an inclusive culture that actively leverages the expertise and perspectives of our diverse workforce an important factor in our ability to deliver innovative and relevant client solutions in a dynamic marketplace.

We derive substantially all of our operating revenues and income from providing investment management and related services to investors in jurisdictions worldwide through our investment products, which include our funds, as well as institutional and high-net-worth separate accounts, retail separately managed account programs, sub-advised products, and other investment vehicles. Related services include fund administration, sales and distribution, and shareholder servicing. We may perform services directly or through third parties. The asset management industry continues to experience disruption and challenges, including increased fee pressure, regulatory changes, an increasing and changing role of technology in asset management services, the continuous introduction of new products and services, and the consolidation of financial services firms through mergers and acquisitions. Further, financial markets have currently and in the past experienced and may continue, from time to time, to experience volatility and disruption worldwide. Declines in global economic conditions have currently and in the past resulted, and may continue to result, in significant decreases in our AUM, revenues and income, and future declines may further negatively impact our financial results. Such declines have had, and may in the future have, a material adverse impact on our business. We may need to modify our business, strategies or operations and we may be subject to additional constraints or costs in order to compete in a changing global economy and business environment.

Individual financial, equity, debt and commodity markets may be adversely affected by financial, economic, political, electoral, diplomatic or other instabilities that are particular to the country or region in which a market is located, including without limitation local acts of terrorism, economic crises, political protests, war, insurrection or other business, social or political crises. For example, the Russian invasion of Ukraine, and the threat that Russia’s military aggression may expand beyond Ukraine, has significantly impacted the global economy and financial markets, which has had, and may continue to have, an adverse effect on our investment performance and flows in certain products. Global economic conditions, exacerbated by war, terrorism, social, civil or political unrest, natural disasters, public health crises, such as epidemics or pandemics, or financial crises, changes in the equity, debt or commodity marketplaces, changes in currency exchange rates, interest rates, inflation rates, the yield curve, defaults by trading counterparties, bond defaults, revaluation and bond market liquidity risks, geopolitical risks, the imposition of economic sanctions and other factors that are difficult to predict, affect the mix, market values and levels of our AUM. Changing market conditions could also cause an impairment to the value of our goodwill and other intangible assets.

Fluctuations in the amount and mix of our AUM may be attributable in part to market conditions outside of our control that have had, and in the future could have, a negative impact on our revenues and income. The level of our revenues depends largely on the level and relative mix of AUM. Our investment management fee revenues are based primarily on a percentage of AUM and vary with the nature and strategies of our products. Any decrease in the value or amount of our AUM because of market volatility or other factors, such as asset outflows or a decline in the price of stocks, in particular market segments or in the securities market generally, negatively impacts our revenues and income. Changing market conditions and investor preferences may cause a shift in our asset mix toward certain lower fee products, such as fixed income products and ETFs, and away from higher fee equity and multi-asset products, which may cause a related decline in our revenues and income. In addition, increases in interest rates, particularly if rapid, as well as uncertainty in the future direction of interest rates, may have a negative impact on our fixed income products and decrease the total return on bond investments due to lower market valuations of existing bonds. Moreover, we generally derive higher investment management and distribution fees from our international products than from our U.S. products, and higher sales fees from our U.S. products than from our international products. Changing market conditions may cause a shift in our asset mix

Our investment performance, along with achieving and maintaining superior distribution and client service, is critical to the success of our business. Strong investment performance often stimulates sales of our products. Poor investment performance, as currently experienced by certain of our products, as compared to third-party benchmarks or competitive products, has led, and could in the future lead, to a decrease in sales of our products and stimulate redemptions from existing products, generally lowering the overall level of AUM and reducing the management fees we earn. We can provide no assurance that past or present investment performance in our products will be indicative of future performance. If we fail, or appear to fail, to address successfully and promptly the underlying causes of poor investment performance, our future business prospects would likely be negatively affected.

Our reputation is critical to the success of our business. We believe that our brand names have been, and continue to be, well received both in our industry and with our clients, reflecting the fact that our brands, like our business, are based in part on trust and confidence. If our brands or reputation are harmed, existing clients may reduce amounts held in, or withdraw entirely from, our products, or our clients and products may terminate their management agreements with us, which could reduce the amount of our AUM and cause us to suffer a corresponding loss in our revenues and income. In addition, reputational harm may prevent us from attracting new clients or developing new business. Moreover, ESG topics and activities have been the subject of increased focus by certain investors and regulators in the asset management industry, and any inability to meet applicable requirements or expectations may adversely impact our reputation and business.

As part of our global business strategy, we regularly consider, and have discussions with respect to, potential strategic transactions, including acquisitions, dispositions, consolidations, joint ventures or similar transactions, some of which may be deemed material. There can be no assurance that we will find suitable candidates for strategic transactions at acceptable prices, have sufficient capital resources to accomplish our strategy, or be successful in entering into agreements for desired transactions. In addition, such transactions typically involve a number of risks and present financial, managerial and operational challenges. Acquisitions and related transactions pose the risk that any business we acquire may result in the loss of clients, customers or personnel or could underperform relative to expectations. We also may not realize the anticipated benefits of an acquisition, including with respect to revenue, tax benefits, financial benefits or returns, and expense and other synergies. We could also experience financial or other setbacks if transactions encounter unanticipated problems, including problems related to execution or integration. Entries into material transactions typically are announced publicly even though they may remain subject to numerous closing conditions, contingencies and approvals, and there is no assurance that any announced transaction will actually be consummated. Future transactions also may further increase our leverage or, if we issue equity securities to pay for acquisitions, dilute the holdings of our existing stockholders.

In addition, from time to time, we enter into joint ventures or take minority stakes in companies in which we typically do not have control. These investments may involve risks, including the risk that the controlling stakeholder or joint venture partner may have business interests, strategies or goals that are inconsistent with ours. The business decisions or other actions or omissions of the controlling stakeholder, joint venture partner or the entity itself may result in liability to us or harm to our reputation, or adversely affect the value of our investment in the entity.

We sell our products and offer our strategies and investment management and related services in many different regulatory jurisdictions around the world, and intend to continue to expand our operations internationally. As we do so, we will continue to face challenges to the adequacy of our resources, procedures and controls to operate our business consistently and effectively. In order to remain competitive, we must be proactive and prepared to implement necessary resources when growth opportunities present themselves, whether as a result of a business acquisition or rapidly increasing business activities in particular markets or regions. Local regulatory environments may vary widely in terms of scope, adequacy and sophistication. Similarly, local distributors, and their policies and practices as well as financial viability, may vary widely and they may be inconsistent or less developed or mature than other more internationally focused distributors. Growth of our international operations has involved and may continue to involve near-term increases in expenses, as well as additional capital costs, such as information systems and technology costs, and costs related to compliance with particular regulatory or other local requirements or needs. Local requirements or needs also may place additional demands on sales and compliance personnel and resources, such as meeting local language requirements, while also integrating personnel into an organization with a single operating language. Finding, hiring and retaining additional, well-qualified personnel and crafting and adopting policies, procedures and controls to address local or regional requirements remain challenges as we expand our operations internationally.

Moreover, regulators in non-U.S. jurisdictions could also change their policies or laws in a manner that might restrict or otherwise impede our ability to distribute or authorize products or maintain their authorizations in their respective markets. Any of these local requirements, activities or needs could increase the costs and expenses we incur in a specific jurisdiction without any corresponding increase in revenues and income from operating in the jurisdiction. Certain laws and regulations both inside and outside the U.S. have extraterritorial application. This may lead to duplicative or conflicting legal or regulatory burdens and additional costs and risks.

While we maintain a significant portion of our operations in the U.S., we also provide services and earn revenues in Asia-Pacific; Europe, Middle East and Africa; Latin America; and Canada. As a result, we are subject to foreign currency exchange risk through our non-U.S. operations. Fluctuations in the exchange rates to the U.S. dollar have affected, and may in the future affect, our financial results from one period to the next. While we have taken steps to reduce our exposure to foreign exchange risk, for example, by denominating a significant amount of our transactions in U.S. dollars, our situation may change in the future. Appreciation of the U.S. dollar could in the future moderate revenues from managing our products internationally, or could affect relative investment performance of certain of our products invested in non-U.S. securities. In addition, we have risk associated with the foreign exchange revaluation of U.S. dollar balances held by certain non-U.S. subsidiaries for which the local currency is the functional currency. Separately, management fees that we earn tend to be higher in connection with non-U.S. AUM than with U.S. AUM. Consequently, downturns in international markets have in the past had, and could in the future have, a significant effect on our revenues and income. Moreover, our emerging market portfolios and revenues derived from managing these portfolios are subject to significant risks of loss from financial, economic, political and diplomatic developments, currency fluctuations, social instability, changes in governmental policies, expropriation, nationalization, asset confiscation and changes in legislation related to non-U.S. ownership. International trading markets, particularly in some emerging market countries, are often smaller, less liquid, less regulated and significantly more volatile than those in the U.S. Any ongoing and future business, economic, political or social unrest affecting these markets, in addition to any direct consequences such unrest may have on our personnel and facilities located in the affected area, also may have a lasting impact on the long-term investment climate in these and other areas and, as a result, our AUM and the corresponding revenues and income that we generate from them may be negatively affected.

We compete with numerous investment management companies, securities brokerage and investment banking firms, insurance companies, banks and other financial institutions. Our products also compete with products offered by these competitors, as well as with real estate investment trusts, hedge funds and other products. The periodic establishment of new investment management companies and other competitors increases the competition that we face. At the same time, consolidation in the financial services industry has created stronger competitors with greater financial resources and broader distribution channels than our own. Competition is based on various factors, including, among others, business reputation, investment performance, product mix and offerings, ESG strategies and considerations, service quality and innovation, distribution relationships, and fees charged. Further, although we may offer certain types of ETFs, to the extent that there is a trend among existing or potential clients in favor of lower-fee index and other ETFs, it may favor our competitors who may offer such products that are more established or on a larger scale than we do. Additionally, competing securities broker-dealers and banks, upon which we rely to distribute and sell certain of our funds and other products, also may sell their own proprietary funds and products, which could limit the distribution of our products. To the extent that existing or potential clients, including securities broker-dealers, decide to invest in or distribute the products of our competitors, the sales of our products as well as our market share, revenues and income could decline. Our ability to attract and retain AUM is also dependent on the relative investment performance of our products, offering a mix of products and strategies that meets investor demands, and our ability to maintain our investment management fees and pricing structure at competitive levels.

Moreover, we can provide no assurance that we will continue to have access to the third-party financial intermediaries that currently distribute our products, or that we will continue to have the opportunity to offer all or some of our existing products through them. If several of the major financial advisers that distribute our products were to cease operations or limit or otherwise end the distribution of our products, it could have a significant adverse impact on our revenues and income.

Further, the standards of conduct and disclosure and reporting requirements, with respect to fees, products, services and possible conflicts of interest, applicable to broker-dealers and other financial intermediaries in the U.S., remain subject to change and enhancement pursuant to business and regulatory developments and requirements, including with respect to investor suitability obligations, enhanced investor protections for retail customers, and increased compliance requirements.

In addition, Canada, the U.K., the Netherlands and the EU, through MiFID II, have adopted regimes that ban, or may limit, the payment of commissions and other inducements to intermediaries in relation to certain sales to retail customers in those jurisdictions, and similar regimes are under consideration in several other jurisdictions. Depending on their exact terms, such regimes may result in existing flows of business moving to less profitable channels or even to competitors providing substitutable products outside the regime. Arrangements with non-independent advisers will also be affected as narrower rules related to the requirement that commissions reflect an enhancement of the service to customers come into effect, along with a prescriptive list of permissible non-monetary benefits. The interpretation of the inducements rules has also resulted in major changes to how fund managers, including us, finance investment research with many firms, by opting to pay for third-party investment research for client accounts covered by MiFID II.

We currently, and may in the future, depend on a number of third-party providers to support various operational, administrative, technology, transfer agency, market data, distribution, and other business needs of our company. Further, we outsource various administration, technology, transfer agency and other services for our funds to third-party providers. In addition, we may, from time to time, transfer vendor contracts and services from one provider to another. If our third-party providers fail to deliver required services on a timely basis, or if we experience other negative service quality or relationship issues with our providers, we may be exposed to significant costs and/or operational difficulties, and our ability to conduct and grow our business may be impaired. Such administrative and functional changes are costly and complex, and may expose us to heightened operational risks. Any failure to mitigate such risks could result in reputational harm to us, as well as financial losses to us and our clients. The failure of any key provider or vendor to fulfill its obligations to us could result in outcomes inconsistent with our or our clients’ objectives and requirements, result in legal liability and regulatory issues for us, and otherwise adversely impact us.

Due to our interconnectivity with third-party vendors, advisors, central agents, exchanges, clearing organizations and other financial institutions, we may be adversely affected if any of them is subject to a successful cyber attack or other privacy or information security event, including those arising due to the use of mobile technology or a third-party cloud environment. Most of the software applications that we use in our business are licensed from, and supported, upgraded and maintained by, third-party vendors. Our third-party applications include enterprise cloud storage and cloud computing application services provided and maintained by third-party vendors. Any breach, suspension or termination of certain of these licenses or the related support, upgrades and maintenance could cause temporary system delays or interruption that could adversely impact our business. Our third-party applications may include confidential and proprietary data provided by vendors and by us, including personal employee and/or client data.

Potential system disruptions, failures or breaches of the technology we use or the security infrastructure we rely upon, including the third-party applications we use, could result in: (i) material financial loss or costs, (ii) delays in clients’ ability to access account information or in our ability to process transactions, (iii) the unauthorized disclosure or modification of sensitive or confidential client and business information, (iv) loss of valuable information, (v) breach of client and vendor contracts, (vi) liability for stolen assets, information or identity, (vii) remediation costs to repair damage caused by the failure or breach, (viii) additional security and organizational costs to mitigate against future incidents, (ix) reputational harm, (x) loss of confidence in our business and products, (xi) liability for failure to review and disclose applicable incidents or provide relevant updated disclosure properly and timely, (xii) regulatory investigations or actions, and/or (xiii) legal claims, litigation, and liability costs, any one or more of which may be material. Moreover, loss or unauthorized disclosure or transfer of confidential and proprietary data or confidential customer identification information could further harm our reputation and subject us to liability under laws that protect confidential data and personal information, resulting in increased costs or a decline in our revenues or common stock price. Further, although we take precautions to password protect and encrypt our laptops and sensitive information on our other mobile electronic devices, if such devices are stolen, misplaced or left unattended, they may become vulnerable to hacking or other unauthorized use, creating a possible security risk, which may require us to incur additional administrative costs and/or take remedial actions. In addition, failure to manage and operate properly the data centers and third-party cloud storage and computing application services we use could have an adverse impact on our business. Although we have in place certain disaster recovery plans, we may experience system delays and interruptions as a result of natural disasters, power failures, acts of war, and third-party failures.

Should we experience a local or regional disaster or other business continuity problem, such as an earthquake, hurricane, tsunami, terrorist attack, public health crisis, pandemic or other natural or man-made disaster, our continued success will depend, in part, on the safety and availability of our personnel, our office facilities and infrastructure, and the proper functioning of our technology, computer, telecommunication and other systems and operations that are critical to our business. While our operational size, the diversity of locations from which we operate, and our various back-up systems provide us with an advantage, should we experience a local or regional disaster or other business continuity event, we could still experience operational challenges, in particular depending upon how such a local or regional event may affect our personnel across our operations or with regard to particular aspects of our operations, such as key executives or personnel in our technology groups. Moreover, as we grow our operations in new geographic regions, the potential for particular types of natural or man-made disasters, political, economic or infrastructure instabilities, information, technology or security limitations or breaches, or other country- or region-specific business continuity risks increases. Past disaster recovery efforts have demonstrated that even seemingly localized events may require broader disaster recovery efforts throughout our operations and, consequently, we regularly assess and take steps to improve upon our existing business continuity plans. However, a disaster on a significant scale or affecting certain of our key operating areas within or across regions, or our inability to recover successfully following a disaster or other business continuity problem, could adversely impact our business and operations.

There is uncertainty associated with the regulatory and compliance environments in which we operate. Our business is subject to extensive and complex, overlapping and/or conflicting, and frequently changing and increasing rules, regulations, policies and legal interpretations, around the world. Political and electoral changes, developments and conflicts have in the past introduced, and may in the future introduce, additional uncertainty. Our regulatory and compliance obligations impose significant operational and cost burdens on us and cover a broad range of requirements related to financial reporting and other disclosure matters, securities and other financial instruments, investment and advisory matters, accounting, tax, compensation, ethics, intellectual property, data protection, privacy, sanctions programs, and escheatment requirements. We may be adversely affected by a failure to comply with applicable laws, regulations and changes in the countries in which we operate.

We are subject to complex tax regimes, changing tax laws, income taxes, non-income-based taxes, and ongoing tax audits, in the various jurisdictions in which we operate. Tax authorities may disagree with certain positions we have taken and assess additional taxes. We regularly assess the likely outcomes of these audits in order to determine the appropriateness of our tax provision. However, there can be no assurance that we will accurately predict the outcomes of these audits and the actual outcomes could have a material impact on our financial condition. Changes in tax laws or rulings, including corporate tax rate increases, capital gains rate increases for fund investors and other tax rate increases impacting our clients and their willingness to invest in our products, may at times materially impact our financial condition.

We operate in a highly regulated industry and routinely receive and respond to regulatory and governmental requests for documents or other information, subpoenas, examinations and, in some instances, investigations in connection with our

We own our San Mateo, California corporate headquarters and various other office buildings in the U.S. and internationally. We lease excess owned space to third parties under leases with terms through 2033. Our owned properties consist of the following:

We lease office space in 16 states in the U.S. and Washington, D.C., and internationally, including Australia, Brazil, Canada, the People’s Republic of China (including Hong Kong), Germany, India, Japan, Luxembourg, Mexico, Singapore, South Korea, United Arab Emirates and the U.K. As of September 30, 2022, we leased and occupied approximately 1,971,000 square feet of office space worldwide, and subleased to third parties approximately 420,000 square feet of excess leased space. In addition, we entered into a lease agreement for office space in New York City with occupancy expected to begin in early fiscal year 2024.

The following description of our executive officers is included as an unnumbered item in this Part I of this Annual Report in lieu of being included in our definitive proxy statement for our annual meeting of stockholders. Set forth below are the name, age, present title, and certain other information for each of our executive officers as of the filing date of this Annual Report. Generally, each executive officer is appointed by our board of directors and holds his or her office until the earlier of his or her death, resignation, retirement, disqualification or removal.

The following table provides information with respect to the shares of our common stock that we repurchased during the three months ended September 30, 2022.

The level of our revenues depends largely on the level and relative mix of assets under management (“AUM”). As noted in the “Risk Factors” section set forth above in Item 1A of Part I of this Annual Report, the amount and mix of our AUM are subject to significant fluctuations that can negatively impact our revenues and income. The level of our revenues also depends on the fees charged for our services, which are based on contracts with our funds and customers, fund sales, and the number of shareholder transactions and accounts. These arrangements could change in the future.

Our total AUM was $1,297.4 billion at September 30, 2022, which was 15% lower than at September 30, 2021 driven by the negative impact of $269.0 billion of net market change, distributions and other, $27.8 billion of long-term net outflows and $0.8 billion of cash management net outflows, partially offset by $64.9 billion from acquisitions. Simple monthly average AUM (“average AUM”) decreased 2% during fiscal year 2022.

On April 1, 2022, we acquired all of the outstanding ownership interests in Lexington Partners L.P. (“Lexington”), a leading global manager of secondary private equity and co-investment funds, for cash consideration of $1.0 billion and additional payments totaling $750.0 million to be paid in cash over the next three years. In connection with the acquisition, we granted a 25% ownership stake in Lexington and performance-based cash retention awards to certain employees that vest over approximately five years. On December 31, 2021, we acquired all of the outstanding ownership interest in O’Shaughnessy Asset Management, LLC (“OSAM”), a leading quantitative asset management firm, for cash consideration paid of approximately $300 million, excluding future payments to be made subject to the attainment of certain performance measures.

The business and regulatory environments in which we operate globally remain complex, uncertain and subject to change. We are subject to various laws, rules and regulations globally that impose restrictions, limitations, registration, reporting and disclosure requirements on our business, and add complexity to our global compliance operations.

Uncertainties regarding the global economy remain for the foreseeable future. As we continue to confront the challenges of the current economic and regulatory environments, we remain focused on the investment performance of our products and on providing high quality service to our clients. We continuously perform reviews of our business model. While we remain focused on expense management, we will also seek to attract, retain and develop personnel and invest strategically in systems and technology that will provide a secure and stable environment. We will continue to seek to protect and further our brand recognition while developing and maintaining broker-dealer and client relationships. The success of these and other strategies may be influenced by the factors discussed in the “Risk Factors” section.

Components of the change in AUM are shown below. Net market change, distributions and other includes appreciation (depreciation), distributions to investors that represent return on investments and return of capital, and foreign exchange revaluation.

AUM decreased $232.7 billion or 15% during fiscal year 2022 due to the negative impact of $269.0 billion of net market change, distributions and other, $27.8 billion of long-term net outflows and $0.8 billion of cash management net outflows, partially offset by acquisitions of $64.9 billion. Net market change, distributions and other primarily consists of $199.2 billion of market depreciation, $48.7 billion of long-term distributions and a $21.1 billion decrease from foreign exchange revaluation. The market depreciation occurred in all asset classes with the exception of the alternative asset class. Foreign exchange revaluation from AUM in products that are not U.S. dollar denominated was primarily due to a stronger U.S. dollar compared to the Japanese Yen, Euro, Pound Sterling and Australian dollar.

AUM increased $111.2 billion or 8% during fiscal year 2021 due to the positive impact of $148.0 billion of net market change, distributions and other, and $3.5 billion from an acquisition, partially offset by $25.2 billion of long-term net outflows and $15.1 billion of cash management net outflows. Net market change, distributions and other primarily consists of $176.3 billion of market appreciation, partially offset by $29.1 billion of long-term distributions. The market appreciation occurred in all asset classes, most significantly in the equity and multi-asset classes and reflected positive returns in global equity markets.

Long-term inflows increased 100% to $364.7 billion, as compared to the prior year, and long-term outflows increased 60% to $389.9 billion due to higher inflows and outflows in all long-term asset classes primarily due to the acquisition of Legg Mason. Long-term net outflows included outflows of $35.7 billion from sixteen institutional products, including two fixed income redemptions of $5.9 billion and $2.0 billion and two equity redemptions of $3.7 billion and

The region in which investment products are sold may differ from the geographic area in which we provide investment management and related services to the products.

Past performance is not indicative of future results. For AUM included in institutional and retail separately managed accounts and investment funds managed in the same strategy as separate accounts, performance comparisons are based on gross-of-fee performance. For investment funds which are not managed in a separate account format, performance comparisons are based on net-of-fee performance. These performance comparisons do not reflect the actual performance of any specific separate account or investment fund; individual separate account and investment fund performance may differ. The information in this presentation is provided solely for use in connection with this document, and is not directed toward existing or potential clients of Franklin.

Investment management fees are generally calculated under contractual arrangements with our investment products and the products for which we provide sub-advisory services as a percentage of AUM. Annual fee rates vary by asset class and type of services provided. Fee rates for products sold outside of the U.S. are generally higher than for U.S. products.

Investment management fees increased $75.2 million in fiscal year 2022 primarily due to higher performance fees, partially offset by a 2% decrease in average AUM. The decrease in average AUM occurred primarily in the fixed income and equity asset classes, partially offset by an increase in the alternative asset class that includes the acquisition of Lexington.

Investment management fees increased $2,559.9 million in fiscal year 2021 primarily due to the acquisition of Legg Mason, a 5% increase in average AUM and higher performance fees. The increase in average AUM occurred primarily in the equity and multi-asset asset classes, partially offset by a decrease in the fixed income asset class.

Our effective investment management fee rate excluding performance fees (investment management fees excluding performance fees divided by average AUM) was 41.6, 41.8 and 47.3 basis points for fiscal years 2022, 2021 and 2020. The rate decrease in fiscal year 2022 was primarily due to a shift in assets from higher-fee products to lower-fee products in the fixed income and equity asset classes. The rate decrease in fiscal year 2021 was primarily due to the Legg Mason acquisition, as Legg Mason generally had a lower overall effective fee rate due to a higher mix of institutional and fixed income AUM.

Performance-based investment management fees were $498.2 million, $258.6 million and $44.0 million for fiscal years 2022, 2021 and 2020. The increase in fiscal year 2022 was primarily due to strong performance by our alternative specialist investment managers, while the increase in fiscal year 2021 was primarily due to the acquisition of Legg Mason as well as strong performance.

Our product offerings and global operations are diverse. As such, the impact of future changes in AUM on investment management fees will be affected by the relative mix of asset class, geographic region, distribution channel and investment vehicle of the assets.

Sales and distribution fees primarily consist of upfront sales commissions and ongoing distribution fees. Sales commissions are earned from the sale of certain classes of sponsored funds at the time of purchase (“commissionable sales”) and may be reduced or eliminated depending on the amount invested and the type of investor. Therefore, sales fees generally will change with the overall level of gross sales, the size of individual transactions, and the relative mix of sales between different share classes and types of investors.

Contingent sales charges are earned from investor redemptions within a contracted period of time. Substantially all of these charges are levied on certain shares sold without a front-end sales charge, and vary with the mix of redemptions of these shares.

We pay substantially all of our sales and distribution fees to the financial advisers, broker-dealers and other intermediaries that sell our funds on our behalf. See the description of sales, distribution and marketing expenses below.

Sales and distribution fees by revenue driver are presented below.

Asset-based distribution fees decreased $152.1 million in fiscal year 2022 primarily due to a 12% decrease in the related average AUM. Asset-based distribution fees increased $206.0 million in fiscal year 2021 primarily due to the acquisition of Legg Mason and $53.1 million from a 5% increase in the related average AUM, partially offset by $33.2 million from a higher mix of lower-fee U.S. assets.

Sales-based fees decreased $63.5 million in fiscal year 2022 primarily due to a 20% decrease in commissionable sales. Sales-based fees increased $68.7 million in fiscal year 2021 primarily due to the acquisition of Legg Mason and $13.0 million from higher commissionable sales.

Substantially all shareholder servicing fees are earned from our sponsored funds for providing transfer agency services, which include providing shareholder statements, transaction processing, customer service and tax reporting. These fees are primarily determined based on a percentage of AUM and either the number of transactions in shareholder accounts or the number of shareholder accounts, while fees from certain funds are based only on AUM. Shareholder servicing fees also include fund reimbursements of expenses incurred while providing transfer agency services.

Shareholder servicing fees decreased $18.2 million in fiscal year 2022 primarily due to lower levels of related AUM and transactions. Shareholder servicing fees increased $16.1 million in fiscal year 2021 primarily due to the acquisition of Legg Mason and higher levels of related AUM, partially offset by lower levels of transactions.

Other revenue increased $13.3 million and increased $9.5 million in fiscal years 2022 and 2021 primarily due to higher real estate transaction fees earned by certain of our alternative asset managers.

The table below presents the percentage change in each operating expense category.

The components of compensation and benefits expenses are presented below.

Salaries, wages and benefits decreased $2.2 million in fiscal year 2022 primarily due to a $16.8 million decrease in termination benefits and the impact of headcount reductions which were substantially offset by increases due to annual salary adjustments and the acquisitions of Lexington and OSAM. Salaries, wages and benefits increased $365.9 million in fiscal year 2021, primarily due to the acquisition of Legg Mason.

Incentive compensation increased $196.6 million in fiscal year 2022, primarily due to higher performance fees and the acquisition of Lexington. Incentive compensation increased $753.9 million in fiscal year 2021, primarily due to the acquisition of Legg Mason.

Acquisition-related retention expenses increased $3.5 million in fiscal year 2022, primarily due to acquisition of Lexington and decreased $32.1 million in fiscal year 2021 primarily due to lower costs associated with the acquisition of Legg Mason.

Other compensation and benefits were $(4.3) million, $75.1 million, and $65.4 million for fiscal years 2022, 2021, and 2020. The changes for fiscal years 2022 and 2021 were primarily related to market adjustments on investments related to our deferred compensation plans and compensation related to minority interests. Special termination benefits also decreased $18.9 million and $27.7 million in fiscal years 2022 and 2021 primarily due to workforce optimization initiatives related to the acquisition of Legg Mason.

We expect to incur acquisition-related retention expenses of approximately $230 million during the fiscal year ending September 30, 2023 (“fiscal year 2023”), and decreasing over the following two fiscal years by approximately $30 million and $70 million. At September 30, 2022, our global workforce had decreased to approximately 9,800 employees from approximately 10,300 at September 30, 2021.

We continue to place a high emphasis on our pay for performance philosophy. As such, any changes in the underlying performance of our investment products or changes in the composition of our incentive compensation offerings could have an impact on compensation and benefits expenses going forward. However, in order to attract and retain talented individuals, our level of compensation and benefit expenses may increase more quickly or decrease more slowly than our revenue.

Sales, distribution and marketing expenses primarily relate to services provided by financial advisers, broker-dealers and other intermediaries to our sponsored funds, including marketing support services. Substantially all distribution expenses are incurred from assets that generate distribution fees and are determined as a percentage of AUM. Substantially all sales expenses are incurred from the same commissionable sales transactions that generate sales fee revenues and are determined as a percentage of sales. Marketing support expenses are based on AUM, sales or a combination thereof. Also included is the amortization of deferred sales commissions related to upfront commissions on shares sold without a front-end sales charge. The deferred sales commissions are amortized over the periods in which commissions are generally recovered from related revenues.

Sales, distribution and marketing expenses by cost driver are presented below.

Asset-based expenses decreased $182.1 million in fiscal year 2022 primarily due to an 11% decrease in the related average AUM. Asset-based expenses increased $345.7 million in fiscal year 2021 primarily due to the acquisition of Legg Mason and $59.7 million from a 5% increase in the related average AUM.

Sales-based expenses decreased $64.7 million in fiscal year 2022 primarily due to a 20% decrease in commissionable sales. Sales-based expenses increased $59.1 million in fiscal year 2021 primarily due to the acquisition of Legg Mason and $12.1 million from higher commissionable sales.

Information systems and technology expenses increased $14.1 million in fiscal year 2022 primarily due to higher costs incurred for technology consulting, software and external data services offset in part by lower technology depreciation. Information systems and technology expenses increased $197.7 million in fiscal year 2021 primarily due to higher external data service and software costs and technology consulting as a result of the Legg Mason acquisition.

Occupancy expenses remained relatively flat in fiscal year 2022 and increased $70.2 million in fiscal year 2021. The increase in fiscal year 2021 was primarily due to an increase in leased office space as a result of the Legg Mason acquisition.

Amortization of intangible assets increased $50.0 million in fiscal year 2022, primarily due to intangible assets recognized as part of the acquisition of Lexington Partners, and increased $178.0 million in fiscal year 2021 primarily due to intangible assets recognized as part of the acquisition of Legg Mason.

General, administrative and other operating expenses increased $86.9 million in fiscal year 2021, primarily due to the acquisition of Legg Mason and $43.0 million of closed-end fund product launch costs. The increase was also due to increases of $35.0 million in third-party fund administration and sub-advisory service fees and $12.9 million in placement and platform fees. The increases were partially offset by $55.4 million of prior year impairments of intangible assets and goodwill primarily related to assets recognized from the acquisitions of Benefit Street Partners, L.L.C. and Onsa, Inc., (formally known as TokenVault, Inc.).

Investment and other income (losses), net consists primarily of gains (losses) on investments held by the Company, income (losses) from equity method investees, foreign currency exchange gains (losses), rental income from excess owned space which we lease to third parties, gains (losses) on derivatives, and dividend income.

Investment and other income (losses), net decreased $173.6 million in fiscal year 2022 primarily due to the impact of market declines in the current year. Investment and other income (losses), net increased $303.1 million in fiscal year 2021 primarily due to income from equity method investees and gains on investments held by the Company, partially offset by a decrease in dividend income and losses on derivatives.

Income from equity method investees decreased $118.1 million in fiscal year 2022. The current year included a $52.6 million gain recognized on the sale of our investment in Embark, offset in part by losses from equity method investees, largely related to declines in market valuations of investments held by various global equity and alternative funds, while the prior year included gains from equity method investees. Equity method investees generated income of $154.3 million in fiscal year 2021, as compared to losses of $98.1 million in fiscal year 2020, reflecting recovery in market valuations of investments held by various global equity funds.

Investments held by the Company generated net losses of $75.4 million, as compared to net gains of $90.9 million in the prior year, primarily from investments in nonconsolidated funds and separate accounts and assets invested for deferred compensation plans, partially offset by net gains from investments measured at cost adjusted for observable price change. Investments held by the Company generated net gains of $90.9 million in fiscal year 2021, as compared to net losses of $16.8 million in fiscal year 2020, primarily from various nonconsolidated funds, and in fiscal year 2021, assets invested for Legg Mason deferred compensation plans.

Net foreign currency exchange gains were $40.6 million in fiscal year 2022, as compared to net losses of $11.9 million in the prior year. The increases were primarily due to the impact of the strengthening of the U.S. dollar against the Euro and British Pound.

Derivatives generated gains of $20.9 million in fiscal year 2022, losses of $23.2 million in fiscal 2021, and gains of $3.0 million in fiscal 2020.

Dividend and interest income increased $20.3 million in fiscal year 2022, primarily due to higher yields on money market funds, and decreased $45.6 million in fiscal year 2021 primarily due to lower dividend yields on money market funds.

Interest expense increased $12.8 million in fiscal year 2022 primarily due to accretion on Lexington deferred consideration. Interest expense increased $52.0 million in fiscal year 2021 primarily due to interest expense recognized on debt of Legg Mason and on the senior unsecured unsubordinated notes issued during fiscal year 2021, partially offset by the redemption of the junior notes issued by Legg Mason.

Investment and other income (loss) of consolidated investment products, net consists of investment gains (losses) on investments held by consolidated investment products (“CIPs”) and dividend and interest income. Expenses of consolidated investment products primarily consists of fund-related expenses, including professional fees and other administrative expenses, and interest expense. Significant portions of the investment and other income of consolidated investment products, net and expenses of consolidated investment products are offset in noncontrolling interests in our consolidated statements of income.

Investments held by CIPs generated losses of $66.9 million in fiscal year 2022, as compared to gains of $324.6 million in the prior year, largely related to net losses on holdings of various equity and fixed income funds and lower gains on holdings of various alternative funds. Dividend and interest income of CIPs was $49.2 million in fiscal year 2022, as compared to $96.5 million in the prior year. Investment and other income of consolidated investment products, net increased $350.9 million in fiscal year 2021 primarily due to net gains on investments held by various alternative funds.

Expenses of consolidated investment products decreased $11.5 million in fiscal year 2022 and increased $1.8 million in fiscal year 2021, due to activity of the funds.

Our investments in sponsored funds include initial cash investments made in the course of launching mutual fund and other investment product offerings, as well as investments for other business reasons. The market conditions that impact our AUM similarly affect the investment income earned or losses incurred on our investments in sponsored funds.

Our cash, cash equivalents and investments portfolio by asset class and accounting classification at September 30, 2022, excluding third-party assets of CIPs, was as follows:

Our effective income tax rate for fiscal year 2022 was 22.9% as compared to 14.3% in fiscal year 2021 and 22.7% in fiscal year 2020. The rate increase in fiscal year 2022 was primarily due to the release of a tax reserve in the prior year following the close of an IRS audit of the U.S. taxation of deemed foreign dividends for fiscal year 2018, net losses on investments held by CIPs for which there are no related tax benefits, as compared to net gains in fiscal year 2021, and a decrease in foreign earnings. The rate decrease in fiscal year 2021 was primarily due the release of the tax reserve mentioned above and net income attributable to noncontrolling interests as compared to a net loss in fiscal year 2020.

As supplemental information, we are providing performance measures for “adjusted operating income,” “adjusted operating margin,” “adjusted net income” and “adjusted diluted earnings per share,” each of which is based on methodologies other than generally accepted accounting principles (“non-GAAP measures”). Management believes these non-GAAP measures are useful indicators of our financial performance and may be helpful to investors in evaluating our relative performance against industry peers.

“Adjusted operating income,” “adjusted operating margin,” “adjusted net income” and “adjusted diluted earnings per share” are defined below, followed by reconciliations of operating income, operating margin, net income attributable to Franklin Resources, Inc. and diluted earnings per share on a U.S. GAAP basis to these non-GAAP measures. Non-GAAP measures should not be considered in isolation from, or as substitutes for, any financial information prepared in accordance with U.S. GAAP, and may not be comparable to other similarly titled measures of other companies. Additional reconciling items may be added in the future to these non-GAAP measures if deemed appropriate.

We define adjusted operating income as operating income adjusted to exclude the following:

We define adjusted net income as net income attributable to Franklin Resources, Inc. adjusted to exclude the following:

We define adjusted diluted earnings per share as diluted earnings per share adjusted to exclude the per share impacts of the adjustments applied to net income in calculating adjusted net income.