Vontobel Holding Ltd. Decreases Stock Holdings in Manulife Financial Corp (NYSE:MFC)

Vontobel Holding Ltd. cut its position in Manulife Financial Corp (NYSE:MFC - Free Report) TSE: MFC by 22.2% in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 321,177 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 91,482 shares during the quarter. Vontobel Holding Ltd.'s holdings in Manulife Financial were worth $10,009,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. JCIC Asset Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of 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 acquiring an additional 360 shares in the last quarter. Erste Asset Management GmbH lifted its position in shares of Manulife Financial by 0.6% during the 4th quarter. Erste Asset Management GmbH now owns 69,300 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $2,133,000 after buying an additional 400 shares in the last quarter. TIAA Trust National Association lifted its position in shares of Manulife Financial by 5.0% during the 4th quarter. TIAA Trust National Association now owns 8,419 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $259,000 after buying an additional 404 shares in the last quarter. M&T Bank Corp lifted its position in shares of Manulife Financial by 1.2% during the 4th quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 40,894 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,256,000 after buying an additional 489 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Ancora Advisors LLC raised its stake in Manulife Financial by 34.7% in the 4th quarter. Ancora Advisors LLC now owns 1,943 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $60,000 after purchasing an additional 500 shares during the last quarter. 52.56% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, Morgan Stanley set a $46.00 price objective on Manulife Financial in a research note on Monday, May 19th.

Manulife Financial Stock Up 0.5%

Shares of MFC traded up $0.17 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $31.62. The company had a trading volume of 936,889 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,175,415. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $31.50 and a 200-day simple moving average of $30.51. The stock has a market cap of $54.01 billion, a PE ratio of 16.56, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.09 and a beta of 0.99. Manulife Financial Corp has a 1-year low of $23.30 and a 1-year high of $33.07.

Manulife Financial (NYSE:MFC - Get Free Report) TSE: MFC last issued its quarterly earnings data 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 for the quarter. Manulife Financial had a return on equity of 15.84% and a net margin of 9.58%. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.94 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Manulife Financial Corp will post 2.87 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Manulife Financial Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 19th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, May 21st were paid a $0.3194 dividend. This is an increase from Manulife Financial's previous quarterly dividend of $0.31. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, May 21st. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.04%. Manulife Financial's payout ratio is 67.02%.

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.