Manulife Financial Corp (NYSE:MFC) Short Interest Down 41.4% in August

Key Points

• Manulife Financial Corp's short interest decreased by 41.4% in August, with total short interest of 13,880,000 shares as of August 31st.
• The company announced an increase in its quarterly dividend to $0.3199, representing a 4.0% annualized yield.
• Analysts have set an average price target of $48.50 for Manulife Financial's stock, with an overall rating of "Buy."

Manulife Financial Corp (NYSE:MFC - Get Free Report) TSE: MFC was the recipient of a significant decrease in short interest during the month of August. As of August 31st, there was short interest totaling 13,880,000 shares, a decrease of 41.4% from the August 15th total of 23,700,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 2,240,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 6.2 days. Approximately 0.8% of the company's shares are short sold. Approximately 0.8% of the company's shares are short sold. Based on an average trading volume of 2,240,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 6.2 days.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Manulife Financial

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Rossby Financial LCC bought a new position in shares of Manulife Financial in the first quarter valued at approximately $243,000. Mackenzie Financial Corp lifted its position in Manulife Financial by 0.9% in the 4th quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 24,614,416 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $755,367,000 after buying an additional 230,105 shares in the last quarter. Affinity Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Manulife Financial during the 1st quarter valued at $3,934,000. Intact Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Manulife Financial by 17.2% during the 1st quarter. Intact Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,527,925 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $78,780,000 after purchasing an additional 370,570 shares in the last quarter. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its holdings in Manulife Financial by 5.8% in the 1st quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 9,501,434 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $295,970,000 after acquiring an additional 521,451 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 52.56% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have commented on the stock. Royal Bank Of Canada dropped their price target on shares of Manulife Financial from $51.00 to $49.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, August 8th. Morgan Stanley set a $48.00 price target on shares of Manulife Financial in a research note on Monday, August 18th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat, Manulife Financial has an average rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $48.50.

Manulife Financial Trading Up 0.3%

Shares of Manulife Financial stock opened at $31.89 on Friday. Manulife Financial has a 12-month low of $25.92 and a 12-month high of $33.07. The stock has a market cap of $54.04 billion, a PE ratio of 14.24, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.06 and a beta of 0.99. The company has a 50-day moving average of $30.68 and a two-hundred day moving average of $30.63.

Manulife Financial (NYSE:MFC - Get Free Report) TSE: MFC last issued 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 business had revenue of $11.30 billion for the quarter. Manulife Financial had a return on equity of 15.77% and a net margin of 10.46%.During the same period last year, the business posted $0.91 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Manulife Financial will post 2.87 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Manulife Financial Increases Dividend

The business 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 $0.3199 dividend. This is a boost from Manulife Financial's previous quarterly dividend of $0.32. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, August 20th. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.0%. 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.

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