Candriam S.C.A. Acquires 85,354 Shares of Manulife Financial Corp $MFC

Candriam S.C.A. boosted its holdings in shares of Manulife Financial Corp (NYSE:MFC) (TSE:MFC) by 13.6% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 711,534 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 85,354 shares during the period. Candriam S.C.A.’s holdings in Manulife Financial were worth $22,173,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. Wealth Alliance LLC boosted its position in shares of Manulife Financial by 1.7% in the 2nd quarter. Wealth Alliance LLC now owns 20,984 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $671,000 after purchasing an additional 345 shares in the last quarter. HM Payson & Co. raised its stake in Manulife Financial by 9.0% during the third quarter. HM Payson & Co. now owns 4,308 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $134,000 after buying an additional 354 shares during the last quarter. Signaturefd LLC boosted its holdings in Manulife Financial by 0.7% in the third quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 53,762 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,675,000 after acquiring an additional 373 shares in the last quarter. Apollon Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Manulife Financial by 2.2% in the second quarter. Apollon Wealth Management LLC now owns 19,059 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $609,000 after acquiring an additional 402 shares during the last quarter. Finally, New England Capital Financial Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Manulife Financial by 7.4% during the second quarter. New England Capital Financial Advisors LLC now owns 5,939 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $190,000 after acquiring an additional 411 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 52.56% of the company’s stock.

Manulife Financial Price Performance

MFC opened at $38.04 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $63.80 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.91 and a beta of 0.83. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $36.69 and a 200-day moving average price of $33.58. Manulife Financial Corp has a twelve month low of $25.92 and a twelve month high of $38.72.

Manulife Financial (NYSE:MFC) (TSE:MFC) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, November 12th. The financial services provider reported $0.84 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.74 by $0.10. The business had revenue of $12.90 billion during the quarter. Manulife Financial had a net margin of 9.81% and a return on equity of 16.11%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.00 earnings per share. As a group, analysts expect that Manulife Financial Corp will post 2.87 earnings per share for the current year.

Manulife Financial Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 19th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, November 26th were given a $0.44 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, November 26th. This is a positive change from Manulife Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.32. This represents a $1.76 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.6%. Manulife Financial’s payout ratio is 55.56%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on MFC shares. Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce upgraded shares of Manulife Financial from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 8th. Morgan Stanley set a $51.00 target price on shares of Manulife Financial in a research note on Monday, December 15th. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Manulife Financial from a “buy (b+)” rating to a “buy (a-)” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 29th. Scotiabank restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Manulife Financial in a report on Thursday. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Manulife Financial in a research note on Friday, November 14th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and four have issued a Buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company 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.