Manulife Financial Co. (NYSE:MFC) Stake Increased by Invst LLC

Invst LLC increased its stake in Manulife Financial Co. (NYSE:MFC) (TSE:MFC) by 78.7% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 15,965 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 7,032 shares during the period. Invst LLC’s holdings in Manulife Financial were worth $420,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MFC. FIL Ltd increased its stake in Manulife Financial by 750.5% during the fourth quarter. FIL Ltd now owns 9,910,281 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $218,990,000 after purchasing an additional 8,745,071 shares during the last quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank increased its stake in Manulife Financial by 57.9% during the first quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank now owns 23,307,081 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $582,444,000 after purchasing an additional 8,548,114 shares during the last quarter. 1832 Asset Management L.P. increased its stake in Manulife Financial by 103.1% during the first quarter. 1832 Asset Management L.P. now owns 14,686,893 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $367,025,000 after purchasing an additional 7,456,712 shares during the last quarter. National Bank of Canada FI increased its stake in Manulife Financial by 14.8% during the first quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 28,803,968 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $749,435,000 after purchasing an additional 3,720,693 shares during the last quarter. Finally, M&G Plc bought a new stake in Manulife Financial during the first quarter valued at $75,231,000. Institutional investors own 52.56% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have weighed in on MFC. TD Securities boosted their target price on shares of Manulife Financial from $38.00 to $40.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, June 28th. Barclays initiated coverage on shares of Manulife Financial in a research note on Thursday, September 5th. They set an “equal weight” rating for the company. Finally, Dbs Bank upgraded shares of Manulife Financial to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 8th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $35.67.

Manulife Financial Stock Performance

Manulife Financial stock opened at $29.55 on Tuesday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $26.93 and a 200-day simple moving average of $25.84. The firm has a market capitalization of $52.89 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.18, a P/E/G ratio of 1.06 and a beta of 1.08. Manulife Financial Co. has a one year low of $17.07 and a one year high of $29.88.

Manulife Financial (NYSE:MFC) (TSE:MFC) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 7th. The financial services provider reported $0.91 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.64 by $0.27. The business had revenue of $9.41 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.95 billion. Manulife Financial had a net margin of 9.18% and a return on equity of 16.16%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.62 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Manulife Financial Co. will post 2.72 earnings per share for the current year.

Manulife Financial Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 19th. Investors of record on Wednesday, August 21st were issued a $0.29 dividend. This represents a $1.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.93%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, August 21st. Manulife Financial’s payout ratio is currently 66.86%.

Manulife Financial Profile

Manulife Financial Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, provides financial products and services in the United States, Canada, Asia, and internationally. The company operates through Wealth and Asset Management Businesses; Insurance and Annuity Products; and Corporate and Other segments. The Wealth and Asset Management Businesses segment offers investment advice and solutions to retirement, retail, and institutional clients through multiple distribution channels, including agents and brokers affiliated with the company, independent securities brokerage firms and financial advisors pension plan consultants, and banks.