7,240 Shares in Manulife Financial Co. (NYSE:MFC) Bought by Goelzer Investment Management Inc.

Goelzer Investment Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Manulife Financial Co. (NYSE:MFC) (TSE:MFC) in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm acquired 7,240 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $214,000.

Several other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Manulife Financial by 1.0% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 72,289,251 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,806,508,000 after acquiring an additional 727,764 shares during the period. National Bank of Canada FI raised its stake in shares of Manulife Financial by 14.8% during the 1st quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 28,803,968 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $749,435,000 after purchasing an additional 3,720,693 shares in the last quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank lifted its holdings in shares of Manulife Financial by 3.2% during the 2nd quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank now owns 24,057,503 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $640,411,000 after buying an additional 750,422 shares during the last quarter. 1832 Asset Management L.P. grew its stake in shares of Manulife Financial by 34.3% in the 2nd quarter. 1832 Asset Management L.P. now owns 19,723,609 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $525,042,000 after buying an additional 5,036,716 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Legal & General Group Plc increased its holdings in Manulife Financial by 0.5% in the second quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 14,783,400 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $393,592,000 after buying an additional 75,244 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 52.56% of the company’s stock.

Manulife Financial Price Performance

Manulife Financial stock opened at $30.24 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $54.12 billion, a PE ratio of 17.58, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.06 and a beta of 1.08. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $27.24 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $25.99. Manulife Financial Co. has a one year low of $17.07 and a one year high of $30.25.

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

Manulife Financial Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 19th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, August 21st were paid a $0.29 dividend. This represents a $1.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.84%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, August 21st. Manulife Financial’s dividend payout ratio is 66.86%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have issued reports on MFC. TD Securities upped their price target on shares of Manulife Financial from $38.00 to $40.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, June 28th. Dbs Bank raised Manulife Financial to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 8th. Finally, Barclays initiated coverage on shares of Manulife Financial in a research report on Thursday, September 5th. They set an “equal weight” rating for the company. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $35.67.

Manulife Financial Company 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.