Manulife Financial Corp $MFC Stock Holdings Cut by Crossmark Global Holdings Inc.

Key Points

• Crossmark Global Holdings cut its Manulife Financial stake by 7.7% in the third quarter, selling 26,586 shares and retaining 317,942 shares valued at approximately $13.5 million. Institutional investors collectively own 52.56% of the company.
• Analyst sentiment remains positive, with an overall “Buy” rating and an average price target of $58.75. Royal Bank of Canada raised its target to $67, while other major firms maintained outperform or buy ratings.
• Manulife shares opened at $45.59, near their 52-week high, while the company reported quarterly EPS of $0.79, slightly above expectations. It also paid a quarterly dividend of C$0.48, representing an annualized yield of about 4.3%.

Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. lessened its holdings in shares of Manulife Financial Corp (NYSE:MFC - Free Report) TSE: MFC by 7.7% in the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 317,942 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 26,586 shares during the quarter. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc.'s holdings in Manulife Financial were worth $13,541,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. Diversify Advisory Services LLC boosted its holdings in Manulife Financial by 32.0% in the 3rd quarter. Diversify Advisory Services LLC now owns 9,164 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $402,000 after buying an additional 2,220 shares during the period. Gold Investment Management Ltd. raised its holdings in Manulife Financial by 0.4% during the 3rd quarter. Gold Investment Management Ltd. now owns 206,004 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $8,777,000 after acquiring an additional 770 shares during the period. Baskin Financial Services Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Manulife Financial during the third quarter worth $336,000. Robertson Stephens Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Manulife Financial by 4.0% during the third quarter. Robertson Stephens Wealth Management LLC now owns 20,079 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $855,000 after acquiring an additional 763 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Financial & Tax Architects LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Manulife Financial by 14.7% in the third quarter. Financial & Tax Architects LLC now owns 16,366 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $697,000 after acquiring an additional 2,103 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 52.56% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MFC has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their price objective on Manulife Financial from $55.00 to $67.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, August 7th. TD Securities reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Manulife Financial in a report on Thursday, August 6th. Zacks Research upgraded Manulife Financial from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 2nd. Scotiabank reissued an "outperform" rating on shares of Manulife Financial in a report on Friday, August 7th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets restated an "outperform" rating on shares of Manulife Financial in a research report on Friday, August 7th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have assigned a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $58.75.

Manulife Financial Stock Up 0.7%

Manulife Financial stock opened at $45.59 on Friday. Manulife Financial Corp has a 52 week low of $31.91 and a 52 week high of $45.68. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $43.48 and a 200 day simple moving average of $41.43. The stock has a market cap of $75.64 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.14 and a beta of 0.84.

Manulife Financial (NYSE:MFC - Get Free Report) TSE: MFC last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The financial services provider reported $0.79 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.78 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $2.22 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $7.28 billion. Manulife Financial had a return on equity of 16.68% and a net margin of 9.99%. The company's revenue was up 7.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.95 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that Manulife Financial Corp will post 2.97 earnings per share for the current year.

Manulife Financial Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 21st. Investors of record on Friday, August 21st were given a C$0.48 dividend. This represents a $1.94 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.3%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 21st. Manulife Financial's dividend payout ratio is 51.49%.

Manulife Financial Company Profile

Manulife Financial Corporation is a Canadian financial services company headquartered in Toronto, Ontario. Founded in 1887 as The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company, Manulife has grown into a diversified provider of insurance, wealth and asset management, and retirement solutions. Its common shares trade on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol MFC.

Manulife offers life, health, and property and casualty insurance, along with retirement products, investment solutions, financial advice, and institutional asset management services.

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