Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. Increases Position in Manulife Financial Co. (NYSE:MFC)

Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Manulife Financial Co. (NYSE:MFC - Free Report) TSE: MFC by 197.8% in the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 39,737 shares of the financial services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 26,392 shares during the period. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc.'s holdings in Manulife Financial were worth $1,238,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Lee Danner & Bass Inc. bought a new stake in Manulife Financial in the fourth quarter worth $31,000. Stonebridge Financial Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Manulife Financial during the fourth quarter valued at about $34,000. Golden State Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Manulife Financial in the fourth quarter worth about $35,000. Lazard Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Manulife Financial in the 4th quarter valued at about $35,000. Finally, Transce3nd LLC purchased a new stake in Manulife Financial during the 4th quarter valued at about $42,000. 52.56% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have commented on the company. Morgan Stanley set a $46.00 price target on Manulife Financial in a research note on Monday, May 19th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on shares of Manulife Financial from $49.00 to $51.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, February 21st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, three have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $45.67.

Manulife Financial Trading Down 0.9%

NYSE MFC traded down $0.30 on Tuesday, hitting $32.04. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,406,670 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,133,298. The firm has a market cap of $54.87 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.48, a PEG ratio of 1.11 and a beta of 1.01. Manulife Financial Co. has a 52-week low of $23.30 and a 52-week high of $33.07. The company's 50-day simple moving average is $30.46 and its 200 day simple moving average is $30.53.

Manulife Financial (NYSE:MFC - Get Free Report) TSE: MFC last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 7th. The financial services provider reported $0.69 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.70 by ($0.01). Manulife Financial had a net margin of 10.08% and a return on equity of 15.98%. The company had revenue of $1.49 billion during the quarter. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.94 EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that Manulife Financial Co. will post 2.87 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Manulife Financial Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 19th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, May 21st will be given a $0.3194 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, May 21st. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.99%. This is a positive change from Manulife Financial's previous quarterly dividend of $0.31. Manulife Financial's dividend payout ratio is currently 66.49%.

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.