Acadian Asset Management LLC Decreases Position in Manulife Financial Corp $MFC

Key Points

• Acadian Asset Management LLC reduced its stake in Manulife Financial Corp by 51.4% in the first quarter, holding 631,547 shares valued at approximately $19.67 million after selling over 667,000 shares.
• Manulife Financial recently declared a quarterly dividend of $0.3199 per share, marking an increase from its previous dividend and representing an annual yield of 4.0%.
• Despite a missed earnings estimate for the quarter, with reported earnings per share of $0.69 compared to a consensus of $0.71, analysts maintain a "Buy" rating with a price target averaging around $48.50.

Acadian Asset Management LLC lessened its position in Manulife Financial Corp (NYSE:MFC - Free Report) TSE: MFC by 51.4% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 631,547 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 667,209 shares during the period. Acadian Asset Management LLC's holdings in Manulife Financial were worth $19,668,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its stake in Manulife Financial by 33.9% during the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 9,393 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $288,000 after purchasing an additional 2,376 shares during the last quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. bought a new position in shares of Manulife Financial during the fourth quarter valued at $307,000. Cetera Investment Advisers boosted its position in shares of Manulife Financial by 1.1% during the fourth quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 148,560 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $4,562,000 after buying an additional 1,627 shares during the last quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC increased its holdings in Manulife Financial by 2.3% in the 4th quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 212,208 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $6,523,000 after buying an additional 4,800 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Lazard Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in Manulife Financial in the 4th quarter worth about $35,000. 52.56% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MFC has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Royal Bank Of Canada dropped their price target on shares of Manulife Financial from $51.00 to $49.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, August 8th. Morgan Stanley set a $48.00 target price on shares of Manulife Financial in a report on Monday, August 18th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $48.50.

Manulife Financial Stock Performance

Shares of Manulife Financial stock traded down $0.28 on Wednesday, hitting $31.22. 551,835 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,284,830. Manulife Financial Corp has a 52 week low of $25.92 and a 52 week high of $33.07. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $30.73 and a 200 day simple moving average of $30.65. The stock has a market capitalization of $52.89 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.94, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.08 and a beta of 0.99.

Manulife Financial (NYSE:MFC - Get Free Report) TSE: MFC last issued its earnings results 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). The company had revenue of $11.30 billion for the quarter. Manulife Financial had a return on equity of 15.77% and a net margin of 10.46%.During the same period last year, the company posted $0.91 EPS. Research analysts expect that Manulife Financial Corp will post 2.87 earnings per share for the current year.

Manulife Financial Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 19th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, August 20th will be issued a $0.3199 dividend. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.1%. 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. Manulife Financial's payout ratio is presently 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.