Manulife Financial Corp $MFC Position Reduced by Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio

Key Points

• The Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio reduced its stake in Manulife Financial Corp by 31.8%, owning 130,925 shares after selling 61,182 shares in the second quarter.
• Manulife Financial declared a quarterly dividend of $0.3199 per share, which represents an annualized amount of $1.28 with a yield of 4.1%.
• Despite reporting a missed earnings estimate for the last quarter, Manulife holds a consensus rating of "Buy" from analysts with a target price of $48.50.

Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio cut its position in shares of Manulife Financial Corp (NYSE:MFC - Free Report) TSE: MFC by 31.8% in the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 130,925 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 61,182 shares during the quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio's holdings in Manulife Financial were worth $4,178,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Rossby Financial LCC purchased a new stake in Manulife Financial during the first quarter valued at about $243,000. Affinity Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Manulife Financial in the 1st quarter valued at about $3,934,000. Value Partners Investments Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Manulife Financial by 16,609.6% in the 2nd quarter. Value Partners Investments Inc. now owns 1,519,407 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $48,490,000 after purchasing an additional 1,510,314 shares during the period. Intact Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Manulife Financial by 17.2% in the 1st quarter. Intact Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,527,925 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $78,780,000 after purchasing an additional 370,570 shares during the period. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its holdings in shares of Manulife Financial by 5.8% in the 1st quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 9,501,434 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $295,970,000 after purchasing an additional 521,451 shares during the period. 52.56% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Manulife Financial Stock Performance

Shares of MFC opened at $31.01 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $52.54 billion, a PE ratio of 13.84, a PEG ratio of 1.03 and a beta of 0.99. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $30.84 and its 200 day moving average price is $30.77. Manulife Financial Corp has a twelve month low of $25.92 and a twelve month high of $33.07.

Manulife Financial (NYSE:MFC - Get Free Report) TSE: MFC last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 6th. The financial services provider reported $0.69 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.71 by ($0.02). The business had revenue of $11.30 billion for the quarter. Manulife Financial had a net margin of 10.46% and a return on equity of 15.77%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.91 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Manulife Financial Corp will post 2.87 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Manulife Financial Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 19th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, August 20th were issued a dividend of $0.3199 per share. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.1%. This is a boost from Manulife Financial's previous quarterly dividend of $0.32. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, August 20th. Manulife Financial's dividend payout ratio is 56.70%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on MFC. Royal Bank Of Canada dropped their target price on 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 target price on Manulife Financial in a report on Monday, August 18th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $48.50.

Manulife Financial 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.

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