Russell Investments Group Ltd. Sells 144,263 Shares of Manulife Financial Corp $MFC

Russell Investments Group Ltd. decreased its holdings in shares of Manulife Financial Corp (NYSE:MFC) (TSE:MFC) by 8.4% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,577,876 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 144,263 shares during the period. Russell Investments Group Ltd. owned approximately 0.10% of Manulife Financial worth $67,532,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Bank of America Corp DE acquired a new stake in shares of Manulife Financial in the 2nd quarter worth about $145,177,000. Canerector Inc. boosted its stake in Manulife Financial by 27.0% during the 1st quarter. Canerector Inc. now owns 800,000 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 170,000 shares during the last quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund boosted its stake in 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 purchasing an additional 7,577,711 shares during the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company acquired a new position in Manulife Financial during the 2nd quarter valued at about $92,762,000. Finally, Cidel Asset Management Inc. increased its holdings in Manulife Financial by 10.5% during the 3rd quarter. Cidel Asset Management Inc. now owns 914,580 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $39,063,000 after purchasing an additional 86,954 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 52.56% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have recently commented on MFC. TD Securities reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Manulife Financial in a research note on Thursday, August 6th. BMO Capital Markets restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Manulife Financial in a report on Friday, August 7th. Scotiabank cut Manulife Financial from a “sector outperform” rating to a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 27th. Zacks Research upgraded Manulife Financial from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 2nd. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada increased their price target on Manulife Financial from $55.00 to $67.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, August 7th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have issued a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $59.00.

Manulife Financial Trading Up 0.3%

Shares of MFC traded up $0.13 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $44.05. 1,256,244 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,502,898. Manulife Financial Corp has a 52 week low of $32.58 and a 52 week high of $46.19. The company has a market cap of $72.77 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.41 and a beta of 0.86. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $43.87 and a 200 day simple moving average of $40.33.

Manulife Financial (NYSE:MFC) (TSE:MFC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 4th. The financial services provider reported $0.89 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.83 by $0.06. The business had revenue of $8.78 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.67 billion. Manulife Financial had a net margin of 10.28% and a return on equity of 16.75%. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.16 EPS. Analysts predict that Manulife Financial Corp will post 3.00 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Manulife Financial Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 21st. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 20th will be paid a C$0.48 dividend. This represents a $1.94 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.4%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 20th. Manulife Financial’s payout ratio is presently 54.55%.

Manulife Financial Profile

Manulife Financial Corporation is a Canadian financial services company that provides insurance, wealth management and investment services to individuals and businesses. Its offerings include life and health insurance, group benefits, retirement solutions and investment products. Founded in 1887 as The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company, Manulife serves customers in Canada, the United States and Asia. In the United States, it operates primarily under the John Hancock name. The company also provides asset management services to institutional and retail clients through Manulife Investment Management, which offers investment strategies across a range of asset classes.