Intact Investment Management Inc. Raises Holdings in Manulife Financial Corp (NYSE:MFC)

Intact Investment Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Manulife Financial Corp (NYSE:MFC - Free Report) TSE: MFC by 17.2% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,527,925 shares of the financial services provider's stock after buying an additional 370,570 shares during the period. Manulife Financial comprises approximately 2.7% of Intact Investment Management Inc.'s holdings, making the stock its 3rd largest holding. Intact Investment Management Inc. owned about 0.15% of Manulife Financial worth $78,780,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Lee Danner & Bass Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Manulife Financial during the fourth quarter valued at $31,000. Lazard Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Manulife Financial during the fourth quarter valued at $35,000. Transce3nd LLC purchased a new position in shares of Manulife Financial during the fourth quarter valued at $42,000. Addison Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Manulife Financial by 45.9% during the fourth quarter. Addison Advisors LLC now owns 1,428 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $44,000 after buying an additional 449 shares during the period. Finally, Millstone Evans Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Manulife Financial during the fourth quarter valued at $44,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 52.56% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, Morgan Stanley set a $46.00 price target on Manulife Financial in a research note on Monday, May 19th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, three have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $45.67.

Manulife Financial Stock Performance

MFC stock traded up $0.04 during trading on Friday, reaching $30.67. 2,705,143 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,148,741. Manulife Financial Corp has a 12 month low of $23.30 and a 12 month high of $33.07. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $30.99 and a 200 day simple moving average of $30.47. The company has a market capitalization of $52.38 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.06, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.04 and a beta of 1.01.

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). Manulife Financial had a net margin of 9.58% and a return on equity of 15.84%. The company had revenue of $1.49 billion for the quarter. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.94 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts forecast that Manulife Financial Corp will post 2.87 EPS for the current year.

Manulife Financial Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 19th. Investors of record on Wednesday, May 21st were given a dividend of $0.3194 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, May 21st. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.17%. This is an increase from Manulife Financial's previous quarterly dividend of $0.31. Manulife Financial's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 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.