Maryland State Retirement & Pension System Buys 63,026 Shares of Manulife Financial Corp (NYSE:MFC)

Key Points

• The Maryland State Retirement & Pension System increased its holdings in Manulife Financial Corp by 29.0%, owning 280,524 shares valued at approximately $8.74 million.
• Several institutional investors, including Deutsche Bank AG and Vanguard Group, have also adjusted their stakes, with hedge funds owning 52.56% of the company’s stock.
• Manulife Financial reported $0.69 earnings per share (EPS) for the last quarter, missing analysts' expectations by $0.01, and expects to post 2.87 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Maryland State Retirement & Pension System grew its holdings in Manulife Financial Corp (NYSE:MFC - Free Report) TSE: MFC by 29.0% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 280,524 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 63,026 shares during the period. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System's holdings in Manulife Financial were worth $8,739,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Headlands Technologies LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Manulife Financial in the first quarter valued at approximately $127,000. Deutsche Bank AG raised its holdings in shares of Manulife Financial by 8.7% in the first quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 2,837,989 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $88,403,000 after purchasing an additional 227,979 shares during the last quarter. ASR Vermogensbeheer N.V. acquired a new stake in shares of Manulife Financial in the first quarter valued at approximately $2,187,000. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Manulife Financial by 0.5% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 74,333,649 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $2,316,162,000 after purchasing an additional 369,638 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Thoroughbred Financial Services LLC raised its holdings in shares of Manulife Financial by 24.2% in the first quarter. Thoroughbred Financial Services LLC now owns 18,113 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $564,000 after purchasing an additional 3,524 shares during the last quarter. 52.56% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Manulife Financial Stock Performance

MFC traded up $0.04 during trading on Friday, reaching $30.11. 3,369,849 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,921,994. The stock has a market cap of $51.14 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.44, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.02 and a beta of 1.01. Manulife Financial Corp has a twelve month low of $24.77 and a twelve month high of $33.07. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $31.20 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $30.55.

Manulife Financial (NYSE:MFC - Get Free Report) TSE: MFC last issued its earnings results 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). Manulife Financial had a return on equity of 15.77% and a net margin of 10.46%. The firm had revenue of $11.30 billion for the quarter. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.91 EPS. Equities research analysts predict that Manulife Financial Corp will post 2.87 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Manulife Financial Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 19th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, August 20th will be given a dividend of $0.3199 per share. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.3%. This is a positive change from Manulife Financial's previous quarterly dividend of $0.32. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, August 20th. Manulife Financial's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 67.02%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MFC has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Royal Bank Of Canada lowered their price objective on shares of Manulife Financial from $51.00 to $49.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Friday. Morgan Stanley set a $46.00 target price on shares of Manulife Financial in a report on Monday, May 19th.

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.