Canerector Inc. Has $877.93 Million Stake in Manulife Financial Corp $MFC

Canerector Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Manulife Financial Corp (NYSE:MFC) (TSE:MFC) by 4,445.8% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 28,184,000 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 27,564,000 shares during the period. Manulife Financial comprises approximately 1.7% of Canerector Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 9th largest position. Canerector Inc. owned 1.67% of Manulife Financial worth $877,932,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MFC. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Manulife Financial by 0.5% during the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 76,711,490 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,390,023,000 after purchasing an additional 374,615 shares during the period. TD Asset Management Inc raised its position in Manulife Financial by 5.8% during the 3rd quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 37,638,463 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,172,922,000 after purchasing an additional 2,079,330 shares during the last quarter. 1832 Asset Management L.P. lifted its holdings in Manulife Financial by 3.0% during the 2nd quarter. 1832 Asset Management L.P. now owns 25,155,652 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $803,975,000 after buying an additional 730,187 shares during the period. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Manulife Financial in the 2nd quarter valued at about $632,238,000. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of Manulife Financial by 19.4% in the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 14,008,595 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $453,798,000 after buying an additional 2,276,251 shares during the last quarter. 52.56% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Manulife Financial Price Performance

Shares of MFC opened at $34.31 on Wednesday. Manulife Financial Corp has a one year low of $25.92 and a one year high of $38.72. The company has a market cap of $57.53 billion, a PE ratio of 15.45 and a beta of 0.83. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $36.89 and a 200-day moving average of $34.21.

Manulife Financial (NYSE:MFC) (TSE:MFC) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 11th. The financial services provider reported $0.80 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.76 by $0.04. Manulife Financial had a return on equity of 16.43% and a net margin of 9.18%.The business had revenue of $11.32 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.32 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.03 earnings per share. Analysts expect that Manulife Financial Corp will post 2.87 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Manulife Financial Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 19th. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 25th will be issued a $0.485 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, February 25th. This represents a $1.94 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.7%. This is an increase from Manulife Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.44. Manulife Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 63.51%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the company. Weiss Ratings lowered Manulife Financial from a “buy (a-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research note on Friday, February 13th. Scotiabank reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Manulife Financial in a research note on Thursday, February 5th. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Manulife Financial in a research report on Friday, February 13th. Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce upgraded shares of Manulife Financial from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, January 8th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Manulife Financial in a research report on Friday, November 14th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and five have assigned a Buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $51.50.

Manulife Financial Company Profile

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.