Federation des caisses Desjardins du Quebec Sells 95,774 Shares of Manulife Financial Corp $MFC

Key Points

• Federation des caisses Desjardins du Quebec reduced its position in Manulife Financial by 1.0%, owning approximately 9.96 million shares valued at $310.27 million, making it the firm's 15th largest holding.
• Manulife Financial announced an increase in its quarterly dividend to $0.3199, representing an annualized total of $1.28 with a yield of 4.2%.
• The company had a recent EPS of $0.69, falling short of analysts' expectations, with a consensus target price of $48.50 among analysts.

Federation des caisses Desjardins du Quebec trimmed its position in Manulife Financial Corp (NYSE:MFC - Free Report) TSE: MFC by 1.0% in the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 9,959,442 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 95,774 shares during the period. Manulife Financial accounts for approximately 1.5% of Federation des caisses Desjardins du Quebec's investment portfolio, making the stock its 15th biggest position. Federation des caisses Desjardins du Quebec owned 0.58% of Manulife Financial worth $310,271,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of MFC. Lazard Asset Management LLC bought a new position in Manulife Financial during the 4th quarter worth $35,000. William B. Walkup & Associates Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Manulife Financial in the 1st quarter valued at about $43,000. NBC Securities Inc. boosted its stake in Manulife Financial by 178,700.0% during the 1st 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 acquired a new position in Manulife Financial during the 1st quarter valued at about $59,000. Finally, Ancora Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Manulife Financial by 34.7% during the 4th 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 last quarter. 52.56% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have commented on MFC shares. Royal Bank Of Canada dropped their target price 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. Morgan Stanley set a $48.00 target price on shares of Manulife Financial in a report on Monday, August 18th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $48.50.

Manulife Financial Price Performance

MFC stock traded down $0.25 during trading on Friday, reaching $30.66. The company had a trading volume of 1,728,628 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,427,823. Manulife Financial Corp has a 52 week low of $25.92 and a 52 week high of $33.07. The company has a market cap of $52.07 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.69, a PEG ratio of 1.03 and a beta of 0.99. The business has a 50 day moving average of $30.73 and a 200 day moving average of $30.61.

Manulife Financial (NYSE:MFC - Get Free Report) TSE: MFC last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The financial services provider reported $0.69 earnings per share (EPS) 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 during the quarter. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.91 earnings per share. Research analysts expect that Manulife Financial Corp will post 2.87 earnings per share for the current year.

Manulife Financial Increases Dividend

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