SEB Asset Management AB Purchases Shares of 976,488 Manulife Financial Corp $MFC

Key Points

• SEB Asset Management AB bought a new stake in Manulife Financial in Q1, purchasing 976,488 shares valued at about $33.5 million. The fund now owns roughly 0.06% of the company.
• Institutional ownership remains high, with hedge funds and other investors holding 52.56% of Manulife Financial shares. Several firms recently increased their positions, including the Swiss National Bank, which boosted its holdings by 25.7%.
• Analysts currently have a Buy consensus on MFC with a target price of $51.50, though opinions are mixed after Zacks cut the stock to strong sell. The stock also pays a quarterly dividend of $0.485 per share, implying a 4.5% annual yield.

SEB Asset Management AB acquired a new position in shares of Manulife Financial Corp (NYSE:MFC - Free Report) TSE: MFC in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund acquired 976,488 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $33,531,000. SEB Asset Management AB owned 0.06% of Manulife Financial at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Swiss National Bank boosted its holdings in shares of Manulife Financial by 25.7% during the 1st quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 5,645,600 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $194,191,000 after buying an additional 1,154,200 shares during the period. Arjuna Capital raised its holdings in Manulife Financial by 1.5% in the 1st quarter. Arjuna Capital now owns 130,216 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $4,485,000 after acquiring an additional 1,908 shares during the period. Assetmark Inc. raised its holdings in Manulife Financial by 2.4% in the 1st quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 425,116 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $14,641,000 after acquiring an additional 9,763 shares during the period. Main Street Group LTD acquired a new stake in Manulife Financial during the first quarter worth approximately $34,000. Finally, Bessemer Group Inc. lifted its position in Manulife Financial by 1.0% during the first quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 134,475 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $4,616,000 after acquiring an additional 1,308 shares during the last quarter. 52.56% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently commented on MFC. Zacks Research downgraded Manulife Financial from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 15th. TD Securities reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Manulife Financial in a report on Thursday, May 14th. Weiss Ratings upgraded Manulife Financial from a "buy (b+)" rating to a "buy (a-)" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 28th. Finally, Scotiabank reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of Manulife Financial in a report on Wednesday. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have assigned a Buy rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $51.50.

Manulife Financial Stock Down 0.0%

NYSE MFC opened at $43.38 on Monday. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $39.93 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $37.73. Manulife Financial Corp has a 12-month low of $29.70 and a 12-month high of $43.55. The company has a market capitalization of $72.09 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.21 and a beta of 0.84.

Manulife Financial (NYSE:MFC - Get Free Report) TSE: MFC last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, May 13th. The financial services provider reported $0.77 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.79 by ($0.02). Manulife Financial had a return on equity of 16.58% and a net margin of 10.19%.The business had revenue of $8.89 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.32 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.99 earnings per share. Equities analysts expect that Manulife Financial Corp will post 3.03 EPS for the current year.

Manulife Financial Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 19th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 29th were paid a dividend of $0.485 per share. This represents a $1.94 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.5%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 29th. Manulife Financial's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 56.75%.

About Manulife Financial

Manulife Financial Corporation is a multinational insurance and financial services company headquartered in Toronto, Ontario. Founded in the late 19th century as The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company, Manulife provides a broad range of financial products and services to individual and institutional clients. Its core businesses include life and health insurance, retirement and pension solutions, wealth and asset management, and group benefits.

In wealth and asset management, Manulife operates through Manulife Investment Management and offers mutual funds, segregated funds, institutional asset management, and retirement plan solutions.

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