Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. Purchases 104,026 Shares of Manulife Financial Co. (NYSE:MFC)

Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Manulife Financial Co. (NYSE:MFC - Free Report) TSE: MFC by 109.4% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 199,140 shares of the financial services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 104,026 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc.'s holdings in Manulife Financial were worth $4,401,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings Inc. grew its position in Manulife Financial by 8.8% in the 3rd quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings Inc. now owns 5,507,589 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $100,922,000 after purchasing an additional 446,233 shares in the last quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. grew its position in Manulife Financial by 44.0% in the 3rd quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 86,268 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,577,000 after purchasing an additional 26,369 shares in the last quarter. AustralianSuper Pty Ltd grew its position in Manulife Financial by 11.2% in the 4th quarter. AustralianSuper Pty Ltd now owns 5,793,161 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $128,019,000 after purchasing an additional 582,468 shares in the last quarter. Rowlandmiller & PARTNERS.ADV bought a new stake in Manulife Financial in the 4th quarter worth about $112,000. Finally, Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA grew its position in Manulife Financial by 1.3% in the 3rd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 9,445,466 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $172,663,000 after purchasing an additional 119,192 shares in the last quarter. 52.56% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MFC has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Royal Bank of Canada raised shares of Manulife Financial from a "sector perform" rating to an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 12th. BMO Capital Markets upgraded shares of Manulife Financial from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and boosted their target price for the company from $31.00 to $35.00 in a research note on Thursday, February 15th. Desjardins upgraded shares of Manulife Financial from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 15th. TheStreet upgraded shares of Manulife Financial from a "c+" rating to a "b" rating in a research note on Thursday, December 21st. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on shares of Manulife Financial in a research note on Thursday, February 22nd. They issued a "buy" rating on the stock. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $33.33.

Manulife Financial Trading Up 0.4 %

Shares of MFC stock traded up $0.09 during trading on Friday, reaching $24.39. 1,926,822 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,739,550. The company has a market capitalization of $43.93 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.64, a PEG ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 1.08. The firm's 50-day moving average is $23.73 and its 200 day moving average is $21.09. Manulife Financial Co. has a 1 year low of $17.07 and a 1 year high of $25.14.

Manulife Financial (NYSE:MFC - Get Free Report) TSE: MFC last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 14th. The financial services provider reported $0.68 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.63 by $0.05. Manulife Financial had a net margin of 10.42% and a return on equity of 15.98%. The business had revenue of $10.96 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $7.57 billion. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Manulife Financial Co. will post 2.71 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Manulife Financial Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 19th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, February 28th were paid a $0.298 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 27th. This is a boost from Manulife Financial's previous quarterly dividend of $0.26. This represents a $1.19 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.89%. Manulife Financial's dividend payout ratio is currently 61.66%.

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.