1832 Asset Management L.P. Boosts Holdings in Manulife Financial Corp $MFC

Key Points

• 1832 Asset Management L.P. increased its stake in Manulife Financial Corp by 7.3%, acquiring an additional 1,660,626 shares, bringing its total to 24,425,465 shares.
• Manulife Financial recently posted quarterly earnings of $0.69 per share, missing analysts' expectations of $0.71, and reported a revenue of $11.30 billion.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.3199 per share, marking an increase from the previous dividend of $0.32, and representing an annual yield of 4.3%.

1832 Asset Management L.P. raised its stake in shares of Manulife Financial Corp (NYSE:MFC - Free Report) TSE: MFC by 7.3% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 24,425,465 shares of the financial services provider's stock after buying an additional 1,660,626 shares during the period. Manulife Financial accounts for approximately 0.7% of 1832 Asset Management L.P.'s portfolio, making the stock its 16th biggest holding. 1832 Asset Management L.P. owned 1.43% of Manulife Financial worth $760,853,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Manulife Financial by 0.5% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 74,333,649 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $2,316,162,000 after acquiring an additional 369,638 shares during the last quarter. TD Asset Management Inc increased its position in shares of Manulife Financial by 6.6% in the 1st quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 37,093,064 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,155,639,000 after buying an additional 2,289,205 shares in the last quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp increased its position in shares of Manulife Financial by 0.9% in the 4th quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 24,614,416 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $755,367,000 after buying an additional 230,105 shares in the last quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank increased its position in shares of Manulife Financial by 4.1% in the 4th quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank now owns 22,812,909 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $699,948,000 after buying an additional 902,466 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of Nova Scotia increased its position in shares of Manulife Financial by 7.2% in the 1st quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia now owns 13,990,810 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $436,007,000 after buying an additional 937,794 shares in the last quarter. 52.56% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently commented on MFC. Morgan Stanley set a $48.00 price objective on shares of Manulife Financial in a research note on Monday, August 18th. Royal Bank Of Canada reduced their price target on shares of Manulife Financial from $51.00 to $49.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, August 8th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $48.50.

Manulife Financial Trading Up 0.9%

Shares of NYSE MFC traded up $0.27 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $30.37. The company's stock had a trading volume of 495,786 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,326,879. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $30.83 and a 200 day moving average price of $30.57. The firm has a market capitalization of $51.58 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.55, a P/E/G ratio of 1.00 and a beta of 1.01. Manulife Financial Corp has a one year low of $25.92 and a one year high of $33.07.

Manulife Financial (NYSE:MFC - Get Free Report) TSE: MFC last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The financial services provider reported $0.69 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.71 by ($0.02). The company had revenue of $11.30 billion during the quarter. Manulife Financial had a return on equity of 15.77% and a net margin of 10.46%.During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.91 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts predict that Manulife Financial Corp will post 2.87 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Manulife Financial Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 19th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, August 20th will be paid a $0.3199 dividend. This is a positive change from Manulife Financial's previous quarterly dividend of $0.32. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, August 20th. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.2%. Manulife Financial's dividend payout ratio is currently 56.70%.

About Manulife Financial

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.