TD Asset Management Inc Lowers Stock Holdings in Manulife Financial Corp $MFC

Key Points

• TD Asset Management Inc reduced its stake in Manulife Financial Corp (NYSE:MFC) by 4.1% during the second quarter, now holding approximately 35.56 million shares.
• Despite the decrease, Manulife Financial remains the 20th biggest position in TD Asset Management's portfolio, accounting for 1.0% of its total holdings.
• The company has recently announced a quarterly dividend increase to $0.3199 per share, reflecting a 4.0% dividend yield.

TD Asset Management Inc lowered its position in shares of Manulife Financial Corp (NYSE:MFC - Free Report) TSE: MFC by 4.1% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 35,559,133 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 1,533,931 shares during the period. Manulife Financial accounts for about 1.0% of TD Asset Management Inc's holdings, making the stock its 20th biggest position. TD Asset Management Inc owned 2.08% of Manulife Financial worth $1,134,661,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. JCIC Asset Management Inc. boosted its stake in Manulife Financial by 5.6% during the first quarter. JCIC Asset Management Inc. now owns 6,749 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $210,000 after buying an additional 360 shares during the period. Blair William & Co. IL grew its holdings in shares of Manulife Financial by 1.9% during the first quarter. Blair William & Co. IL now owns 19,878 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $619,000 after purchasing an additional 377 shares in the last quarter. Sachetta LLC raised its stake in Manulife Financial by 15.2% in the second quarter. Sachetta LLC now owns 3,005 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $96,000 after purchasing an additional 396 shares in the last quarter. Apollon Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in Manulife Financial by 2.2% during the second quarter. Apollon Wealth Management LLC now owns 19,059 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $609,000 after purchasing an additional 402 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Pacer Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Manulife Financial by 3.0% in the 1st quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 15,405 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $480,000 after buying an additional 444 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 52.56% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MFC has been the subject of several research reports. Morgan Stanley set a $47.00 target price on shares of Manulife Financial in a research report on Tuesday, October 7th. Weiss Ratings reissued a "buy (a-)" rating on shares of Manulife Financial in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada cut their target price on Manulife Financial from $51.00 to $49.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, August 8th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and two have given a Buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Manulife Financial presently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $48.00.

Manulife Financial Price Performance

Shares of MFC stock opened at $32.10 on Tuesday. The business has a 50-day moving average of $31.00 and a 200 day moving average of $30.85. Manulife Financial Corp has a 1-year low of $25.92 and a 1-year high of $33.07. The stock has a market capitalization of $54.39 billion, a PE ratio of 14.33, a P/E/G ratio of 1.09 and a beta of 0.98.

Manulife Financial (NYSE:MFC - Get Free Report) TSE: MFC last released its quarterly earnings data 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). The company 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 previous year, the business posted $0.91 earnings per share. Analysts anticipate 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 Friday, September 19th. Investors of record on Wednesday, August 20th were paid a $0.3199 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, August 20th. This is a boost from Manulife Financial's previous quarterly dividend of $0.32. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.0%. Manulife Financial's payout ratio is 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.

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