Manulife Financial Corp $MFC Shares Acquired by Raymond James Financial Inc.

Key Points

• Raymond James Financial Inc. increased its stake in Manulife Financial Corp by 3.5% in Q1, owning 546,409 shares valued at approximately $17 million.
• Manulife Financial recently declared a quarterly dividend of $0.3199 per share, increasing its annualized dividend yield to 4.2%.
• Analysts have a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" for Manulife Financial, with a consensus target price of $48.50.

Raymond James Financial Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Manulife Financial Corp (NYSE:MFC - Free Report) TSE: MFC by 3.5% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 546,409 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 18,460 shares during the quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc.'s holdings in Manulife Financial were worth $17,021,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. TD Asset Management Inc boosted its holdings in Manulife Financial by 6.6% in the 1st quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 37,093,064 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,155,639,000 after acquiring an additional 2,289,205 shares during the period. Jupiter Asset Management Ltd. boosted its holdings in Manulife Financial by 871.5% in the 1st quarter. Jupiter Asset Management Ltd. now owns 2,023,966 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $63,057,000 after acquiring an additional 1,815,642 shares during the period. Nuveen LLC purchased a new position in Manulife Financial in the 1st quarter worth approximately $43,445,000. Bessemer Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Manulife Financial by 1,113.7% in the 1st quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 1,086,145 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $33,878,000 after acquiring an additional 996,656 shares during the period. Finally, AGF Management Ltd. boosted its holdings in Manulife Financial by 63.7% in the 1st quarter. AGF Management Ltd. now owns 2,433,140 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $75,792,000 after acquiring an additional 947,057 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 52.56% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have weighed in on MFC. Morgan Stanley set a $48.00 price target on Manulife Financial in a report on Monday, August 18th. Royal Bank Of Canada decreased their price target on Manulife Financial from $51.00 to $49.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Friday, August 8th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $48.50.

Manulife Financial Stock Down 0.9%

Shares of Manulife Financial stock traded down $0.27 on Tuesday, hitting $30.48. 1,715,282 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,509,487. The stock has a market cap of $51.77 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.61, a PEG ratio of 1.03 and a beta of 0.99. The firm's 50-day moving average is $30.80 and its 200 day moving average is $30.60. Manulife Financial Corp has a 52-week low of $25.92 and a 52-week high of $33.07.

Manulife Financial (NYSE:MFC - Get Free Report) TSE: MFC last released its earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The financial services provider reported $0.69 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.71 by ($0.02). The business had revenue of $11.30 billion for the quarter. Manulife Financial had a net margin of 10.46% and a return on equity of 15.77%. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.91 EPS. Equities research 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 will be paid on Friday, September 19th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, August 20th will be paid a dividend of $0.3199 per share. This is an increase from Manulife Financial's previous quarterly dividend of $0.32. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, August 20th. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.2%. Manulife Financial's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 56.70%.

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.