Man Group plc Buys 4,101,390 Shares of Manulife Financial Corp $MFC

Man Group plc lifted its position in shares of Manulife Financial Corp (NYSE:MFC) (TSE:MFC) by 194.9% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 6,205,598 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 4,101,390 shares during the period. Man Group plc’s holdings in Manulife Financial were worth $225,597,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of MFC. Canerector Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Manulife Financial by 4,445.8% during the third quarter. Canerector Inc. now owns 28,184,000 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $877,932,000 after purchasing an additional 27,564,000 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Manulife Financial during the fourth quarter worth about $777,229,000. MUFG Securities EMEA plc boosted its holdings in shares of Manulife Financial by 814.3% during the second quarter. MUFG Securities EMEA plc now owns 6,399,999 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $204,544,000 after purchasing an additional 5,699,999 shares during the period. Mackenzie Financial Corp boosted its holdings in shares of Manulife Financial by 25.6% during the third quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 27,822,300 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $866,649,000 after purchasing an additional 5,671,639 shares during the period. Finally, Quadrature Capital Ltd boosted its holdings in shares of Manulife Financial by 13,155.3% during the third quarter. Quadrature Capital Ltd now owns 4,229,500 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $131,743,000 after purchasing an additional 4,197,592 shares during the period. 52.56% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Manulife Financial Price Performance

Shares of MFC opened at $40.36 on Thursday. Manulife Financial Corp has a one year low of $29.70 and a one year high of $41.43. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $38.66 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $36.89. The firm has a market capitalization of $67.36 billion, a PE ratio of 16.02 and a beta of 0.84.

Manulife Financial (NYSE:MFC) (TSE:MFC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 13th. The financial services provider reported $0.77 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.79 by ($0.02). Manulife Financial had a return on equity of 16.58% and a net margin of 10.19%.The company had revenue of $8.89 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.32 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.99 earnings per share. Analysts expect that Manulife Financial Corp will post 3.2 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Manulife Financial Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 19th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 29th will be issued a $0.485 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 29th. This represents a $1.94 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.8%. Manulife Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 56.75%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on MFC shares. TD Securities reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Manulife Financial in a report on Thursday, May 14th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Manulife Financial from a “buy (b+)” rating to a “buy (a-)” rating in a report on Thursday, May 28th. Finally, Scotiabank reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Manulife Financial in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and five have given a Buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $51.50.

About Manulife Financial

Manulife Financial Corporation is a multinational insurance and financial services company headquartered in Toronto, Ontario. Founded in the late 19th century as The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company, Manulife provides a broad range of financial products and services to individual and institutional clients. Its core businesses include life and health insurance, retirement and pension solutions, wealth and asset management, and group benefits.

In wealth and asset management, Manulife operates through Manulife Investment Management and offers mutual funds, segregated funds, institutional asset management, and retirement plan solutions.