Unigestion Holding SA Has $10.32 Million Stock Position in Manulife Financial Co. (NYSE:MFC)

Unigestion Holding SA grew its stake in shares of Manulife Financial Co. (NYSE:MFC - Free Report) TSE: MFC by 78.4% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 331,084 shares of the financial services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 145,500 shares during the period. Unigestion Holding SA's holdings in Manulife Financial were worth $10,318,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of MFC. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Manulife Financial in the fourth quarter valued at about $654,751,000. FIL Ltd lifted its holdings in shares of Manulife Financial by 21.7% during the 4th quarter. FIL Ltd now owns 39,610,614 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,216,880,000 after buying an additional 7,053,066 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of 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 buying an additional 2,377,338 shares in the last quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board increased its holdings in Manulife Financial by 42.1% in the fourth quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 7,427,745 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $227,895,000 after buying an additional 2,200,000 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. raised its position in Manulife Financial by 216.0% during the fourth quarter. Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,545,393 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $78,110,000 after acquiring an additional 1,739,853 shares in the last quarter. 52.56% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MFC has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Morgan Stanley set a $46.00 target price on shares of Manulife Financial in a research note on Monday, May 19th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price target on Manulife Financial from $49.00 to $51.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, February 21st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, three have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Manulife Financial currently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $45.67.

Manulife Financial Stock Performance

Shares of Manulife Financial stock traded up $0.10 during trading on Thursday, reaching $32.04. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,085,716 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,125,698. The business's fifty day moving average price is $30.40 and its 200-day moving average price is $30.55. The firm has a market cap of $54.88 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.48, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.11 and a beta of 1.00. Manulife Financial Co. has a one year low of $23.30 and a one year high of $33.07.

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

Manulife Financial Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 19th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, May 21st will be given a $0.3194 dividend. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.99%. This is a positive change from Manulife Financial's previous quarterly dividend of $0.31. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, May 21st. Manulife Financial's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 63.87%.

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.