Manulife Financial Co. (NYSE:MFC) Shares Purchased by Quantinno Capital Management LP

Quantinno Capital Management LP grew its position in Manulife Financial Co. (NYSE:MFC - Free Report) TSE: MFC by 5.3% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 158,824 shares of the financial services provider's stock after buying an additional 8,011 shares during the quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP's holdings in Manulife Financial were worth $4,878,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. FIL Ltd increased its position in shares of Manulife Financial by 21.7% during the fourth quarter. FIL Ltd now owns 39,610,614 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,216,880,000 after acquiring an additional 7,053,066 shares during the period. TD Asset Management Inc. grew its stake in Manulife Financial by 0.7% during the 4th quarter. TD Asset Management Inc. now owns 34,803,859 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,068,654,000 after purchasing an additional 228,863 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Manulife Financial during the 4th quarter worth about $654,751,000. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. raised its position in Manulife Financial by 1.7% in the 4th quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. now owns 11,334,413 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $347,757,000 after purchasing an additional 190,738 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC raised its position in Manulife Financial by 28.7% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 10,650,598 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $333,291,000 after purchasing an additional 2,377,338 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 52.56% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have commented on MFC shares. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price objective on shares of Manulife Financial from $49.00 to $51.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, February 21st. Scotiabank reiterated an "outperform" rating on shares of Manulife Financial in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Morgan Stanley set a $46.00 price target on Manulife Financial in a research note on Monday. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, three have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Manulife Financial has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $45.67.

Manulife Financial Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:MFC traded up $0.17 during trading on Friday, hitting $31.11. 347,150 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,164,033. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $30.25 and its 200-day moving average price is $30.57. Manulife Financial Co. has a 12-month low of $23.30 and a 12-month high of $33.07. The stock has a market capitalization of $53.27 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.03, a PEG ratio of 1.11 and a beta of 1.00.

Manulife Financial (NYSE:MFC - Get Free Report) TSE: MFC last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 7th. The financial services provider reported $0.69 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.70 by ($0.01). Manulife Financial had a net margin of 10.08% and a return on equity of 15.98%. The company had revenue of $1.49 billion during the quarter. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.94 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Manulife Financial Co. will post 2.87 EPS for the current year.

Manulife Financial Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 19th. Investors of record on Wednesday, May 21st will be paid a dividend of $0.3194 per share. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.11%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, May 21st. This is an increase from Manulife Financial's previous quarterly dividend of $0.31. Manulife Financial's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 63.87%.

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.