Manulife Financial Corp $MFC Shares Sold by AustralianSuper Pty Ltd

AustralianSuper Pty Ltd trimmed its position in shares of Manulife Financial Corp (NYSE:MFC) (TSE:MFC) by 7.5% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 4,590,585 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 369,565 shares during the quarter. AustralianSuper Pty Ltd’s holdings in Manulife Financial were worth $146,871,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Stratos Wealth Partners LTD. increased its position in shares of Manulife Financial by 25.8% during the second quarter. Stratos Wealth Partners LTD. now owns 46,218 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,477,000 after purchasing an additional 9,478 shares in the last quarter. Cidel Asset Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Manulife Financial by 2.9% during the second quarter. Cidel Asset Management Inc. now owns 496,570 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $15,845,000 after purchasing an additional 14,088 shares in the last quarter. Rossby Financial LCC purchased a new stake in shares of Manulife Financial during the first quarter worth approximately $243,000. Value Partners Investments Inc. increased its position in shares of Manulife Financial by 16,609.6% during the second quarter. Value Partners Investments Inc. now owns 1,519,407 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $48,490,000 after purchasing an additional 1,510,314 shares in the last quarter. Finally, CWM LLC increased its position in shares of Manulife Financial by 211.8% during the second quarter. CWM LLC now owns 51,378 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,642,000 after purchasing an additional 34,902 shares in the last quarter. 52.56% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages recently commented on MFC. Morgan Stanley set a $47.00 price target on Manulife Financial in a research report on Tuesday, October 7th. UBS Group initiated coverage on Manulife Financial in a research report on Thursday, October 16th. They set a “buy” rating for the company. Royal Bank Of Canada lowered their price objective on Manulife Financial from $51.00 to $49.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, August 8th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (a-)” rating on shares of Manulife Financial in a research note on Saturday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and three have given a Buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $48.00.

Manulife Financial Stock Performance

NYSE MFC opened at $32.63 on Monday. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $31.29 and its two-hundred day moving average is $31.02. The firm has a market capitalization of $55.12 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.56, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.13 and a beta of 0.98. Manulife Financial Corp has a fifty-two week low of $25.92 and a fifty-two week high of $33.07.

Manulife Financial (NYSE:MFC) (TSE:MFC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 6th. The financial services provider reported $0.69 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.71 by ($0.02). Manulife Financial had a return on equity of 15.77% and a net margin of 10.46%.The company had revenue of $11.30 billion for the quarter. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.91 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Manulife Financial Corp will post 2.87 EPS for the current year.

Manulife Financial Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 19th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, August 20th were paid a $0.3199 dividend. This is a boost from Manulife Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.32. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, August 20th. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.9%. Manulife Financial’s dividend payout ratio is currently 56.70%.

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.