Manulife Financial Corp $MFC Shares Sold by Invesco Ltd.

Key Points

• Invesco Ltd. has reduced its stake in Manulife Financial Corp by 24.8%, selling 785,114 shares and holding 2,379,116 shares worth approximately $74.1 million after the sale.
• Manulife Financial recently announced a quarterly dividend increase to $0.3199 per share, which represents an annualized dividend yield of 4.2%.
• Manulife Financial's earnings per share for the last quarter was reported at $0.69, missing the consensus estimate of $0.71, while the company had a net margin of 10.46%.

Invesco Ltd. decreased its holdings in shares of Manulife Financial Corp (NYSE:MFC - Free Report) TSE: MFC by 24.8% in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,379,116 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 785,114 shares during the quarter. Invesco Ltd. owned about 0.14% of Manulife Financial worth $74,109,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of MFC. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in Manulife Financial by 0.5% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 74,333,649 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $2,316,162,000 after purchasing an additional 369,638 shares during the last quarter. TD Asset Management Inc raised its stake in Manulife Financial by 6.6% in the first 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 boosted its holdings 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 grew its stake in Manulife Financial by 4.1% during the 4th quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank now owns 22,812,909 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $699,948,000 after buying an additional 902,466 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bank of Nova Scotia boosted its stake in shares of Manulife Financial by 7.2% during the first quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia now owns 13,990,810 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $436,007,000 after buying an additional 937,794 shares during the period. 52.56% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have recently weighed in on MFC shares. Royal Bank Of Canada lowered their target price 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 price target on Manulife Financial in a report on Monday. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $48.50.

Manulife Financial Stock Up 0.3%

Shares of Manulife Financial stock traded up $0.0890 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $30.1790. 1,199,811 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,339,005. Manulife Financial Corp has a fifty-two week low of $25.72 and a fifty-two week high of $33.07. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $30.96 and a 200 day moving average price of $30.55. The stock has a market capitalization of $51.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.48, a P/E/G ratio of 1.04 and a beta of 1.01.

Manulife Financial (NYSE:MFC - Get Free Report) TSE: MFC last posted its quarterly earnings data 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). Manulife Financial had a net margin of 10.46% and a return on equity of 15.77%. The firm had revenue of $11.30 billion during the quarter. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.91 earnings per share. Analysts predict 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. Investors of record on Wednesday, August 20th will be issued a $0.3199 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, August 20th. This is an increase from Manulife Financial's previous quarterly dividend of $0.32. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.2%. Manulife Financial's payout ratio is 57.14%.

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.