Generali Asset Management SPA SGR Acquires 27,581 Shares of Manulife Financial Corp $MFC

Generali Asset Management SPA SGR increased its holdings in Manulife Financial Corp (NYSE:MFC) (TSE:MFC) by 608.0% in the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 32,117 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 27,581 shares during the period. Generali Asset Management SPA SGR’s holdings in Manulife Financial were worth $1,368,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in MFC. Bank of Nova Scotia bought a new position in shares of Manulife Financial during the second quarter valued at about $594,832,000. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board bought a new stake in shares of Manulife Financial in the 2nd quarter valued at about $495,841,000. Legal & General Group Plc bought a new stake in shares of Manulife Financial in the 2nd quarter valued at about $430,039,000. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund lifted its stake in shares of Manulife Financial by 183.7% in the 1st quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund now owns 11,702,230 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $402,969,000 after acquiring an additional 7,577,711 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. purchased a new stake in Manulife Financial during the 2nd quarter valued at about $230,451,000. Institutional investors own 52.56% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MFC has been the topic of several recent research reports. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their price target on Manulife Financial from $55.00 to $67.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, August 7th. Weiss Ratings upgraded Manulife Financial from a “buy (a)” rating to a “buy (a+)” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 8th. Zacks Research raised Manulife Financial from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 2nd. Scotiabank lowered Manulife Financial from a “sector outperform” rating to a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, TD Securities restated a “buy” rating on shares of Manulife Financial in a report on Thursday, August 6th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have assigned a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $58.75.

Manulife Financial Stock Performance

NYSE MFC opened at $45.30 on Friday. Manulife Financial Corp has a fifty-two week low of $31.92 and a fifty-two week high of $45.68. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $43.55 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $39.93. The stock has a market cap of $75.05 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.90 and a beta of 0.84.

Manulife Financial (NYSE:MFC) (TSE:MFC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 5th. The financial services provider reported $0.79 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.78 by $0.01. Manulife Financial had a return on equity of 16.68% and a net margin of 9.99%. The firm had revenue of $2.22 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.28 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.95 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 7.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts predict that Manulife Financial Corp will post 2.97 earnings per share for the current year.

Manulife Financial Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 21st. Investors of record on Friday, August 21st were paid a C$0.48 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 21st. This represents a $1.94 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.3%. Manulife Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 51.49%.

Manulife Financial Company Profile

Manulife Financial Corporation is a Canadian financial services company headquartered in Toronto, Ontario. Founded in 1887 as The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company, Manulife has grown into a diversified provider of insurance, wealth and asset management, and retirement solutions. Its common shares trade on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol MFC.

Manulife offers life, health, and property and casualty insurance, along with retirement products, investment solutions, financial advice, and institutional asset management services.