Bank of Nova Scotia Acquires 937,794 Shares of Manulife Financial Corp (NYSE:MFC)

Key Points

• The Bank of Nova Scotia increased its stake in Manulife Financial Corp by 7.2%, acquiring an additional 937,794 shares in the first quarter, bringing its total holdings to approximately 13.99 million shares.
• Manulife Financial announced a quarterly dividend of $0.3194, which marks a positive increase from its previous dividend of $0.31, with a corresponding dividend yield of 4.2%.
• Despite a quarterly earnings miss of $0.69 EPS against expectations of $0.70 EPS, analysts forecast that Manulife will achieve 2.87 EPS for the current year.

Bank of Nova Scotia lifted its holdings in shares of Manulife Financial Corp (NYSE:MFC - Free Report) TSE: MFC by 7.2% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 13,990,810 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 937,794 shares during the period. Manulife Financial comprises about 1.0% of Bank of Nova Scotia's investment portfolio, making the stock its 18th biggest position. Bank of Nova Scotia owned 0.82% of Manulife Financial worth $436,007,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Lazard Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Manulife Financial in the 4th quarter valued at about $35,000. Transce3nd LLC purchased a new position in Manulife Financial in the 4th quarter worth approximately $42,000. NBC Securities Inc. lifted its position in Manulife Financial by 178,700.0% in the first quarter. NBC Securities Inc. now owns 1,788 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $55,000 after purchasing an additional 1,787 shares during the last quarter. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Manulife Financial in the first quarter valued at approximately $59,000. Finally, Ancora Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Manulife Financial by 34.7% during the fourth quarter. Ancora Advisors LLC now owns 1,943 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $60,000 after purchasing an additional 500 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 52.56% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, Morgan Stanley set a $46.00 target price on shares of Manulife Financial in a research note on Monday, May 19th.

Manulife Financial Price Performance

NYSE MFC opened at $30.46 on Friday. Manulife Financial Corp has a 1 year low of $23.30 and a 1 year high of $33.07. The stock has a market capitalization of $51.89 billion, a PE ratio of 15.95, a PEG ratio of 1.04 and a beta of 1.01. The business's 50-day moving average is $31.30 and its 200 day moving average is $30.55.

Manulife Financial (NYSE:MFC - Get Free Report) TSE: MFC last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 7th. The financial services provider reported $0.69 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.70 by ($0.01). The business had revenue of $1.49 billion during the quarter. Manulife Financial had a return on equity of 15.84% and a net margin of 9.58%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.94 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Manulife Financial Corp will post 2.87 earnings per share for the current year.

Manulife Financial Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 19th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, May 21st were given a $0.3194 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, May 21st. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.2%. This is a positive change from Manulife Financial's previous quarterly dividend of $0.31. Manulife Financial's dividend payout ratio is 67.02%.

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.

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