Cwm LLC Buys 34,902 Shares of Manulife Financial Corp $MFC

Cwm LLC lifted its stake in Manulife Financial Corp (NYSE:MFC) (TSE:MFC) by 211.8% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 51,378 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 34,902 shares during the period. Cwm LLC’s holdings in Manulife Financial were worth $1,642,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Rossby Financial LCC bought a new position in shares of Manulife Financial in the 1st quarter worth $243,000. Value Partners Investments Inc. raised its position in shares of Manulife Financial by 16,609.6% in the 2nd quarter. Value Partners Investments Inc. now owns 1,519,407 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $48,490,000 after acquiring an additional 1,510,314 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its position in shares of Manulife Financial by 5.8% in the 1st quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 9,501,434 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $295,970,000 after acquiring an additional 521,451 shares in the last quarter. Asahi Life Asset Management CO. LTD. bought a new position in shares of Manulife Financial in the 1st quarter worth $431,000. Finally, TD Asset Management Inc raised its position in shares of Manulife Financial by 6.6% in the 1st quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 37,093,064 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,155,639,000 after acquiring an additional 2,289,205 shares in the last quarter. 52.56% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Manulife Financial Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:MFC opened at $31.65 on Monday. The business’s 50-day moving average is $31.11 and its 200 day moving average is $30.87. The firm has a market capitalization of $53.63 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.13, a P/E/G ratio of 1.10 and a beta of 0.98. Manulife Financial Corp has a 1 year low of $25.92 and a 1 year high of $33.07.

Manulife Financial (NYSE:MFC) (TSE:MFC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 6th. The financial services provider reported $0.69 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.71 by ($0.02). The firm had revenue of $11.30 billion during the quarter. Manulife Financial had a net margin of 10.46% and a return on equity of 15.77%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.91 earnings per share. On average, analysts expect that Manulife Financial Corp will post 2.87 EPS for the current year.

Manulife Financial Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 19th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, August 20th were issued a $0.3199 dividend. This is a boost from Manulife Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.32. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, August 20th. Manulife Financial’s dividend payout ratio is currently 56.70%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MFC has been the subject of several recent research reports. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (a-)” rating on shares of Manulife Financial in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Royal Bank Of Canada reduced their target price on Manulife Financial from $51.00 to $49.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, August 8th. UBS Group started coverage on Manulife Financial in a research report on Thursday. They set a “buy” rating on the stock. Finally, Morgan Stanley set a $47.00 target price on Manulife Financial in a research report on Tuesday, October 7th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and three have given a Buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $48.00.

About Manulife Financial

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.