Manulife Financial Corp $MFC Shares Bought by Stratos Wealth Partners LTD.

Key Points

• Stratos Wealth Partners LTD. increased its holdings in Manulife Financial by 25.8%, acquiring a total of 46,218 shares, valued at approximately $1.477 million.
• Manulife Financial recently declared a quarterly dividend of $0.3199 per share, yielding 4.0%, up from the previous dividend of $0.32.
• Despite reporting earnings of $0.69 per share, Manulife missed analyst estimates of $0.71 due to a revenue of $11.3 billion for the quarter.

Stratos Wealth Partners LTD. raised its holdings in Manulife Financial Corp (NYSE:MFC - Free Report) TSE: MFC by 25.8% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 46,218 shares of the financial services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 9,478 shares during the period. Stratos Wealth Partners LTD.'s holdings in Manulife Financial were worth $1,477,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Eastern Bank raised its holdings in Manulife Financial by 156.1% in the 2nd quarter. Eastern Bank now owns 968 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 590 shares during the last quarter. William B. Walkup & Associates Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Manulife Financial during the 1st quarter worth approximately $43,000. Oliver Lagore Vanvalin Investment Group acquired a new stake in shares of Manulife Financial during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $55,000. Carderock Capital Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Manulife Financial during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $58,000. Finally, Kozak & Associates Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Manulife Financial during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $61,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 52.56% of the company's stock.

Manulife Financial Stock Performance

NYSE:MFC opened at $31.85 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $53.97 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.22, a PEG ratio of 1.10 and a beta of 0.98. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $31.15 and a 200 day moving average price of $30.89. Manulife Financial Corp has a fifty-two week low of $25.92 and a fifty-two week high of $33.07.

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). The company had revenue of $11.30 billion for the quarter. Manulife Financial had a return on equity of 15.77% and a net margin of 10.46%.During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.91 earnings per share. Research analysts forecast that Manulife Financial Corp will post 2.87 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Manulife Financial Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 19th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, August 20th were given a $0.3199 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, August 20th. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.0%. This is a boost from Manulife Financial's previous quarterly dividend of $0.32. Manulife Financial's dividend payout ratio is 56.70%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on MFC. Royal Bank Of Canada cut their price target on shares of Manulife Financial from $51.00 to $49.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Friday, August 8th. Weiss Ratings restated a "buy (a-)" rating on shares of Manulife Financial in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Morgan Stanley set a $47.00 price target on shares of Manulife Financial in a report on Tuesday, October 7th. Finally, UBS Group began coverage on shares of Manulife Financial in a report on Thursday, October 16th. They set a "buy" rating for the company. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and three have assigned a Buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $48.00.

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.

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