Manulife Financial Co. (NYSE:MFC) Stake Reduced by JARISLOWSKY FRASER Ltd

JARISLOWSKY FRASER Ltd reduced its position in shares of Manulife Financial Co. (NYSE:MFC) (TSE:MFC) by 7.1% during the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 18,560,925 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 1,422,205 shares during the period. Manulife Financial comprises about 3.0% of JARISLOWSKY FRASER Ltd’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 6th largest holding. JARISLOWSKY FRASER Ltd’s holdings in Manulife Financial were worth $494,153,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of MFC. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC increased its holdings in shares of Manulife Financial by 3.4% in the 4th quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 88,799 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,962,000 after acquiring an additional 2,906 shares during the period. Brown Advisory Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Manulife Financial by 106.3% in the 4th quarter. Brown Advisory Inc. now owns 27,367 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $605,000 after acquiring an additional 14,103 shares during the period. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Manulife Financial by 9.4% in the 4th quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 94,391 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,086,000 after acquiring an additional 8,123 shares during the period. Balentine LLC increased its holdings in shares of Manulife Financial by 7.3% in the 4th quarter. Balentine LLC now owns 22,087 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $488,000 after acquiring an additional 1,508 shares during the period. Finally, Clearbridge Investments LLC purchased a new position in shares of Manulife Financial in the 4th quarter valued at $46,628,000. 52.56% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on MFC. TD Securities lifted their price target on Manulife Financial from $38.00 to $40.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, June 28th. Barclays assumed coverage on Manulife Financial in a research report on Thursday, September 5th. They set an “equal weight” rating on the stock. Finally, Dbs Bank upgraded Manulife Financial to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 8th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $35.67.

Manulife Financial Trading Down 0.0 %

Shares of MFC opened at $28.26 on Thursday. Manulife Financial Co. has a 12 month low of $17.07 and a 12 month high of $28.56. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $26.52 and a 200-day moving average price of $25.54. The firm has a market cap of $50.57 billion, a PE ratio of 16.43, a P/E/G ratio of 1.02 and a beta of 1.08.

Manulife Financial (NYSE:MFC) (TSE:MFC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 7th. The financial services provider reported $0.91 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.64 by $0.27. The firm had revenue of $9.41 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.95 billion. Manulife Financial had a return on equity of 16.16% and a net margin of 9.18%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.62 EPS. As a group, research analysts forecast that Manulife Financial Co. will post 2.72 EPS for the current year.

Manulife Financial Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 19th. Investors of record on Wednesday, August 21st will be paid a $0.29 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, August 21st. This represents a $1.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.11%. Manulife Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 66.86%.

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.