Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC Purchases 68,406 Shares of Manulife Financial Co. (NYSE:MFC)

Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC raised its stake in Manulife Financial Co. (NYSE:MFC - Free Report) TSE: MFC by 152.3% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 113,333 shares of the financial services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 68,406 shares during the quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC's holdings in Manulife Financial were worth $2,505,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. BlackRock Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Manulife Financial by 10.1% during the first quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 878,359 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $18,753,000 after purchasing an additional 80,450 shares during the period. Raymond James Trust N.A. boosted its position in Manulife Financial by 7.9% in the first quarter. Raymond James Trust N.A. now owns 27,503 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $587,000 after buying an additional 2,013 shares in the last quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers acquired a new stake in Manulife Financial in the first quarter valued at approximately $428,000. Moors & Cabot Inc. boosted its position in Manulife Financial by 2.3% in the first quarter. Moors & Cabot Inc. now owns 43,078 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $920,000 after buying an additional 956 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in Manulife Financial by 3.2% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 65,706,458 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,402,832,000 after buying an additional 2,032,695 shares in the last quarter. 52.56% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MFC has been the topic of several analyst reports. 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. BMO Capital Markets raised shares of Manulife Financial from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from $31.00 to $35.00 in a research note on Thursday, February 15th. TheStreet raised shares of Manulife Financial from a "c+" rating to a "b" rating in a research note on Thursday, December 21st. Finally, Desjardins raised shares of Manulife Financial from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 15th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $33.33.

Manulife Financial Stock Down 2.2 %

MFC traded down $0.53 during trading on Friday, reaching $23.19. 2,670,472 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,368,100. The stock's 50-day moving average is $23.91 and its 200 day moving average is $21.23. Manulife Financial Co. has a 12 month low of $17.07 and a 12 month high of $25.14. The stock has a market capitalization of $41.76 billion, a PE ratio of 12.01, a P/E/G ratio of 0.89 and a beta of 1.08.

Manulife Financial (NYSE:MFC - Get Free Report) TSE: MFC last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 14th. The financial services provider reported $0.68 earnings per share for the quarter, beating 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 firm had revenue of $10.96 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.57 billion. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Manulife Financial Co. will post 2.71 EPS for the current year.

Manulife Financial Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 19th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, February 28th were issued a dividend of $0.298 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 27th. This represents a $1.19 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.14%. This is a positive change from Manulife Financial's previous quarterly dividend of $0.26. 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.