M&T Bank Corp Increases Stock Position in Manulife Financial Corp (NYSE:MFC)

M&T Bank Corp increased its position in shares of Manulife Financial Corp (NYSE:MFC - Free Report) TSE: MFC by 24.8% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 51,047 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 10,153 shares during the quarter. M&T Bank Corp's holdings in Manulife Financial were worth $1,590,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in MFC. Lee Danner & Bass Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Manulife Financial in the 4th quarter worth approximately $31,000. Lazard Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in Manulife Financial in the fourth quarter worth $35,000. Transce3nd LLC bought a new position in Manulife Financial in the 4th quarter valued at $42,000. Millstone Evans Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Manulife Financial during the 4th quarter valued at $44,000. Finally, Graney & King LLC purchased a new position in shares of Manulife Financial in the 4th quarter worth about $53,000. 52.56% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, Morgan Stanley set a $46.00 price objective on shares of Manulife Financial in a report on Monday, May 19th.

Manulife Financial Trading Down 0.8%

Shares of NYSE MFC opened at $30.47 on Friday. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $31.47 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $30.51. Manulife Financial Corp has a 1-year low of $23.30 and a 1-year high of $33.07. The firm has a market cap of $52.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.95, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.04 and a beta of 0.99.

Manulife Financial (NYSE:MFC - Get Free Report) TSE: MFC last posted 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 return on equity of 15.84% and a net margin of 9.58%. The firm had revenue of $1.49 billion for the quarter. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.94 EPS. Analysts forecast that Manulife Financial Corp will post 2.87 EPS for the current year.

Manulife Financial Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 19th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, May 21st were paid a $0.3194 dividend. This is an increase from Manulife Financial's previous quarterly dividend of $0.31. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, May 21st. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.19%. Manulife Financial's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 66.49%.

Manulife Financial Company 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.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding MFC? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Manulife Financial Corp (NYSE:MFC - Free Report) TSE: MFC.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.