Manulife Financial Corp $MFC Stock Sold by MORGUARD LINCLUDEN GLOBAL INVESTMENTS Ltd

MORGUARD LINCLUDEN GLOBAL INVESTMENTS Ltd decreased its position in shares of Manulife Financial Corp (NYSE:MFC) (TSE:MFC) by 2.7% during the third quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 466,039 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 13,064 shares during the period. Manulife Financial makes up approximately 2.5% of MORGUARD LINCLUDEN GLOBAL INVESTMENTS Ltd’s holdings, making the stock its 15th biggest holding. MORGUARD LINCLUDEN GLOBAL INVESTMENTS Ltd’s holdings in Manulife Financial were worth $19,849,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. lifted its stake in Manulife Financial by 0.5% during the second quarter. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. now owns 16,757,547 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $683,609,000 after purchasing an additional 81,973 shares during the last quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia bought a new position in shares of Manulife Financial during the 2nd quarter valued at about $594,832,000. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board bought a new position in shares of Manulife Financial during the 2nd quarter valued at about $495,841,000. Legal & General Group Plc bought a new position in shares of Manulife Financial during the 2nd quarter valued at about $430,039,000. Finally, Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund raised its holdings in shares of Manulife Financial by 183.7% during the 1st quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund now owns 11,702,230 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $402,969,000 after buying an additional 7,577,711 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 52.56% of the company’s stock.

Manulife Financial Stock Down 0.5%

NYSE MFC opened at $44.75 on Thursday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $43.52 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $39.89. Manulife Financial Corp has a 12-month low of $31.92 and a 12-month high of $45.68. The firm has a market cap of $74.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.70 and a beta of 0.84.

Manulife Financial (NYSE:MFC) (TSE:MFC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 5th. The financial services provider reported $0.79 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.78 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $2.22 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.28 billion. Manulife Financial had a return on equity of 16.68% and a net margin of 9.99%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 7.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.95 earnings per share. Equities analysts expect that Manulife Financial Corp will post 2.97 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Manulife Financial Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 21st. Investors of record on Friday, August 21st were issued a dividend of C$0.48 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 21st. This represents a $1.94 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.3%. Manulife Financial’s dividend payout ratio is currently 51.49%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts recently weighed in on MFC shares. Scotiabank downgraded Manulife Financial from a “sector outperform” rating to a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday. BMO Capital Markets reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Manulife Financial in a research report on Friday, August 7th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Manulife Financial from a “buy (a)” rating to a “buy (a+)” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 8th. TD Securities reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Manulife Financial in a research note on Thursday, August 6th. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded shares of Manulife Financial from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 2nd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have given a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Manulife Financial presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $58.75.

Manulife Financial Profile

Manulife Financial Corporation is a Canadian financial services company headquartered in Toronto, Ontario. Founded in 1887 as The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company, Manulife has grown into a diversified provider of insurance, wealth and asset management, and retirement solutions. Its common shares trade on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol MFC.

Manulife offers life, health, and property and casualty insurance, along with retirement products, investment solutions, financial advice, and institutional asset management services.