Desjardins Global Asset Management Inc. Sells 9,782 Shares of Manulife Financial Co. (NYSE:MFC)

Desjardins Global Asset Management Inc. trimmed its stake in shares of Manulife Financial Co. (NYSE:MFC) (TSE:MFC) by 57.7% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 7,158 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 9,782 shares during the quarter. Desjardins Global Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Manulife Financial were worth $159,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in MFC. BlackRock Inc. grew its stake in Manulife Financial by 10.1% during the first quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 878,359 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $18,753,000 after purchasing an additional 80,450 shares during the period. Raymond James Trust N.A. grew its stake in Manulife Financial by 7.9% during the first quarter. Raymond James Trust N.A. now owns 27,503 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $587,000 after purchasing an additional 2,013 shares during the period. Cetera Investment Advisers acquired a new stake in Manulife Financial during the first quarter worth approximately $428,000. Moors & Cabot Inc. grew its stake in Manulife Financial by 2.3% during the first quarter. Moors & Cabot Inc. now owns 43,078 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $920,000 after purchasing an additional 956 shares during the period. Finally, Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC grew its stake in Manulife Financial by 32.7% in the first quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 14,560 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $311,000 after acquiring an additional 3,585 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 52.56% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have commented on MFC. TheStreet raised Manulife Financial from a “c+” rating to a “b” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 21st. Desjardins raised Manulife Financial from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 15th. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on Manulife Financial in a research note on Thursday, February 22nd. They issued a “buy” rating for the company. Finally, BMO Capital Markets raised Manulife Financial from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and raised their price objective for the company from $31.00 to $35.00 in a research note on Thursday, February 15th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $33.33.

Manulife Financial Stock Up 0.5 %

Shares of NYSE:MFC opened at $22.94 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $41.31 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.88, a PEG ratio of 0.84 and a beta of 1.08. Manulife Financial Co. has a 12-month low of $17.07 and a 12-month high of $25.14. The business’s 50 day moving average is $23.98 and its 200 day moving average is $21.39.

Manulife Financial (NYSE:MFC) (TSE:MFC) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 14th. The financial services provider reported $0.68 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.63 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $10.96 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.57 billion. Manulife Financial had a return on equity of 15.98% and a net margin of 10.42%. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Manulife Financial Co. will post 2.71 earnings per share for the current year.

Manulife Financial Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 19th. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 28th were issued a dividend of $0.298 per share. This is a positive change from Manulife Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.26. This represents a $1.19 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.20%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 27th. Manulife Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 61.66%.

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.