JHX vs BEN Comparison

James Hardie is a manufacturer of fiber cement-based building products, selling primarily to the residential construction industry. North America is the primary geography, generating about 80% of group earnings. Here, it is the largest manufacturer of fiber cement, which is mainly used for exterior siding on houses. Following the Azek acquisition in 2025, it also produces wooden composite decking materials, siding trims, and accessories for outdoor areas including stair and deck railing. Businesses in Australia, New Zealand, and Europe, make up the rest of earnings.

Franklin Resources provides investment services for individual and institutional investors. At the end of July 2025, Franklin had $1.617 trillion in managed assets, composed primarily of equity (41%), fixed-income (27%), multi-asset/balanced (11%) funds, alternatives (16%) and money market funds (5%). Distribution tends to be weighted between retail investors (56% of AUM) and institutional accounts (41%), with high-net-worth clients accounting for the remainder. Franklin is one of the more global of the US-based asset managers we cover, with 31% of its assets under management invested in global/international strategies and just as much sourced from clients domiciled outside the United States.