Savvy Advisors Inc. Buys 2,898 Shares of Manulife Financial Corp $MFC

Savvy Advisors Inc. increased its stake in Manulife Financial Corp (NYSE:MFC) (TSE:MFC) by 16.9% during the second quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 20,063 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 2,898 shares during the period. Savvy Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Manulife Financial were worth $641,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of MFC. Eastern Bank raised its holdings in shares of Manulife Financial by 156.1% in the 2nd quarter. Eastern Bank now owns 968 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 590 shares during the period. William B. Walkup & Associates Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Manulife Financial in the 1st quarter worth approximately $43,000. Oliver Lagore Vanvalin Investment Group bought a new stake in shares of Manulife Financial in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $55,000. Carderock Capital Management Inc. bought a new stake in Manulife Financial during the 2nd quarter valued at $58,000. Finally, Kozak & Associates Inc. bought a new stake in Manulife Financial during the 2nd quarter valued at $61,000. Institutional investors own 52.56% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Royal Bank Of Canada lowered their target price on shares of Manulife Financial from $51.00 to $49.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, August 8th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (a-)” rating on shares of Manulife Financial in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. UBS Group assumed coverage on shares of Manulife Financial in a report on Thursday, October 16th. They set a “buy” rating on the stock. Finally, Morgan Stanley set a $47.00 target price on shares of Manulife Financial in a report on Tuesday, October 7th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and three have issued a Buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Manulife Financial presently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $48.00.

Manulife Financial Price Performance

MFC opened at $32.37 on Friday. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $31.50 and a 200-day moving average price of $31.15. The firm has a market capitalization of $54.69 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.45, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.13 and a beta of 0.98. Manulife Financial Corp has a one year low of $25.92 and a one year high of $33.07.

Manulife Financial (NYSE:MFC) (TSE:MFC) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The financial services provider reported $0.69 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.71 by ($0.02). The firm had revenue of $11.30 billion for the quarter. Manulife Financial had a net margin of 10.46% and a return on equity of 15.77%. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.91 EPS. On average, 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 declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 19th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, August 20th were given a dividend of $0.3199 per share. This is an increase from Manulife Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.32. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, August 20th. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.0%. Manulife Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 56.70%.

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.