Polar Asset Management Partners Inc. Invests $77.89 Million in Manulife Financial Corp $MFC

Polar Asset Management Partners Inc. acquired a new stake in Manulife Financial Corp (NYSE:MFC) (TSE:MFC) in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 1,923,325 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $77,886,000. Manulife Financial accounts for about 1.3% of Polar Asset Management Partners Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 9th biggest holding.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in MFC. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Manulife Financial in the fourth quarter valued at $777,229,000. Bank of Nova Scotia acquired a new position in Manulife Financial during the 2nd quarter worth about $594,832,000. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board acquired a new stake in shares of Manulife Financial in the second quarter valued at about $495,841,000. Legal & General Group Plc bought a new position in shares of Manulife Financial during the second quarter worth about $430,039,000. Finally, Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund lifted its stake in shares of Manulife Financial by 183.7% in the first quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund now owns 11,702,230 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $402,969,000 after acquiring an additional 7,577,711 shares during the period. 52.56% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Manulife Financial Trading Up 0.8%

Shares of MFC stock opened at $43.18 on Wednesday. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $42.57 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $38.98. Manulife Financial Corp has a 12 month low of $29.77 and a 12 month high of $45.33. The firm has a market capitalization of $71.76 billion, a PE ratio of 16.11 and a beta of 0.84.

Manulife Financial (NYSE:MFC) (TSE:MFC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 5th. The financial services provider reported $0.79 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.78 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $2.22 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.28 billion. Manulife Financial had a net margin of 9.99% and a return on equity of 16.68%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 7.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.95 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts predict that Manulife Financial Corp will post 3.03 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Manulife Financial Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 21st. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 21st will be paid a dividend of $0.485 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 21st. This represents a $1.94 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.5%. Manulife Financial’s payout ratio is 51.49%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Manulife Financial from a “buy (a-)” rating to a “buy (a)” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 19th. TD Securities reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Manulife Financial in a research report on Thursday, August 6th. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their price target on Manulife Financial from $55.00 to $67.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, August 7th. Scotiabank reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Manulife Financial in a research note on Friday, August 7th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Manulife Financial in a research note on Friday, August 7th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have issued a Buy rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Manulife Financial has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $59.00.

Manulife Financial Profile

Manulife Financial Corporation is a multinational insurance and financial services company headquartered in Toronto, Ontario. Founded in the late 19th century as The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company, Manulife provides a broad range of financial products and services to individual and institutional clients. Its core businesses include life and health insurance, retirement and pension solutions, wealth and asset management, and group benefits.

In wealth and asset management, Manulife operates through Manulife Investment Management and offers mutual funds, segregated funds, institutional asset management, and retirement plan solutions.