Manulife Financial Co. (NYSE:MFC) Shares Sold by Atria Investments Inc

Atria Investments Inc lowered its position in shares of Manulife Financial Co. (NYSE:MFC) (TSE:MFC) by 5.1% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 83,150 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 4,426 shares during the quarter. Atria Investments Inc’s holdings in Manulife Financial were worth $2,457,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Manulife Financial by 1.0% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 72,289,251 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,806,508,000 after buying an additional 727,764 shares in the last quarter. National Bank of Canada FI raised its stake in Manulife Financial by 14.8% during the 1st quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 28,803,968 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $749,435,000 after purchasing an additional 3,720,693 shares during the last quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank grew its holdings in shares of Manulife Financial by 3.2% during the 2nd quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank now owns 24,057,503 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $640,411,000 after purchasing an additional 750,422 shares in the last quarter. 1832 Asset Management L.P. lifted its stake in Manulife Financial by 34.3% during the second quarter. 1832 Asset Management L.P. now owns 19,723,609 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $525,042,000 after purchasing an additional 5,036,716 shares during the period. Finally, Legal & General Group Plc grew its holdings in shares of Manulife Financial by 0.5% in the 2nd quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 14,783,400 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $393,592,000 after purchasing an additional 75,244 shares during the last quarter. 52.56% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MFC has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Dbs Bank raised shares of Manulife Financial to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 8th. Barclays assumed coverage on shares of Manulife Financial in a research report on Thursday, September 5th. They set an “equal weight” rating for the company. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Manulife Financial has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $37.50.

Manulife Financial Stock Performance

MFC opened at $32.87 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $57.82 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.92, a PEG ratio of 1.19 and a beta of 1.08. Manulife Financial Co. has a fifty-two week low of $18.80 and a fifty-two week high of $33.07. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $29.69 and a 200 day moving average of $27.27.

Manulife Financial (NYSE:MFC) (TSE:MFC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 6th. The financial services provider reported $1.00 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.70 by $0.30. Manulife Financial had a return on equity of 16.11% and a net margin of 9.79%. The company had revenue of $10.69 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.73 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.69 earnings per share. Equities research analysts predict that Manulife Financial Co. will post 2.74 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Manulife Financial Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 19th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, November 20th will be paid a dividend of $0.296 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, November 20th. This is a boost from Manulife Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.29. This represents a $1.18 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.60%. Manulife Financial’s payout ratio is 57.00%.

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.