Manulife Financial Co. (NYSE:MFC) Shares Acquired by State of Wyoming

State of Wyoming grew its position in Manulife Financial Co. (NYSE:MFC - Free Report) TSE: MFC by 134.0% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 39,189 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 22,444 shares during the quarter. State of Wyoming's holdings in Manulife Financial were worth $1,203,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Barclays PLC grew its position in Manulife Financial by 60.1% during the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 741,764 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $21,919,000 after purchasing an additional 278,307 shares during the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. increased its position in shares of Manulife Financial by 1,067.3% in the 4th quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 686,418 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $21,080,000 after acquiring an additional 627,614 shares during the period. Park Avenue Securities LLC increased its position in shares of Manulife Financial by 34.2% in the 4th quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC now owns 22,845 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $702,000 after acquiring an additional 5,824 shares during the period. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. purchased a new position in Manulife Financial in the 4th quarter worth $410,000. Finally, Avanza Fonder AB acquired a new stake in Manulife Financial during the 4th quarter worth about $3,410,000. 52.56% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Manulife Financial Stock Down 0.7%

Shares of NYSE MFC traded down $0.24 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $31.83. 11,079,555 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,177,529. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $30.20 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $30.56. Manulife Financial Co. has a twelve month low of $23.30 and a twelve month high of $33.07. The firm has a market cap of $54.52 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.38, a PEG ratio of 1.11 and a beta of 1.00.

Manulife Financial (NYSE:MFC - Get Free Report) TSE: MFC last released 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 10.08% and a return on equity of 15.98%. The firm had revenue of $1.49 billion during the quarter. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.94 earnings per share. Research analysts expect that Manulife Financial Co. will post 2.87 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Manulife Financial Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 19th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, May 21st will be issued a $0.3194 dividend. This is a positive change from Manulife Financial's previous quarterly dividend of $0.31. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.01%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, May 21st. Manulife Financial's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 63.87%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on MFC shares. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price objective on Manulife Financial from $49.00 to $51.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, February 21st. Scotiabank reiterated an "outperform" rating on shares of Manulife Financial in a report on Monday, February 3rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, three have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $45.50.

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.