APG Asset Management N.V. Buys Shares of 972,000 Manulife Financial Co. (NYSE:MFC)

APG Asset Management N.V. purchased a new position in Manulife Financial Co. (NYSE:MFC - Free Report) TSE: MFC during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor purchased 972,000 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $28,822,000. APG Asset Management N.V. owned approximately 0.06% of Manulife Financial as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Renaissance Technologies LLC acquired a new stake in Manulife Financial in the 4th quarter valued at $2,256,000. FIL Ltd raised its holdings in shares of Manulife Financial by 21.7% in the 4th quarter. FIL Ltd now owns 39,610,614 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,216,880,000 after acquiring an additional 7,053,066 shares during the last quarter. Ilmarinen Mutual Pension Insurance Co raised its holdings in shares of Manulife Financial by 37.7% in the 4th quarter. Ilmarinen Mutual Pension Insurance Co now owns 365,000 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $11,202,000 after acquiring an additional 100,000 shares during the last quarter. Hurley Capital LLC bought a new position in Manulife Financial in the 4th quarter valued at about $95,000. Finally, Thoroughbred Financial Services LLC acquired a new position in Manulife Financial during the 4th quarter valued at about $448,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 52.56% of the company's stock.

Remove Ads

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts recently issued reports on MFC shares. Scotiabank reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of Manulife Financial in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Royal Bank of Canada upped their target price on shares of Manulife Financial from $49.00 to $51.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, February 21st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, four have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $45.50.

Manulife Financial Stock Up 2.2 %

Manulife Financial stock traded up $0.63 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $28.67. 418,859 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,439,593. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $29.85 and its 200 day simple moving average is $30.46. Manulife Financial Co. has a one year low of $22.61 and a one year high of $33.07. The firm has a market capitalization of $49.26 billion, a PE ratio of 13.85, a P/E/G ratio of 1.11 and a beta of 0.89.

Manulife Financial (NYSE:MFC - Get Free Report) TSE: MFC last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 19th. The financial services provider reported $0.74 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.67 by $0.07. The company had revenue of $9.31 billion for the quarter. Manulife Financial had a return on equity of 15.98% and a net margin of 10.08%. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Manulife Financial Co. will post 2.87 earnings per share for the current year.

Manulife Financial Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 19th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, March 5th were given a dividend of $0.3094 per share. This is an increase from Manulife Financial's previous quarterly dividend of $0.30. This represents a $1.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.32%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 5th. Manulife Financial's dividend payout ratio is currently 58.45%.

Manulife Financial Profile

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.