Manulife Financial Co. (NYSE:MFC) Sees Significant Growth in Short Interest

Manulife Financial Co. (NYSE:MFC - Get Free Report) TSE: MFC was the recipient of a large growth in short interest in January. As of January 31st, there was short interest totalling 11,180,000 shares, a growth of 42.1% from the January 15th total of 7,870,000 shares. Approximately 0.6% of the shares of the stock are short sold. Based on an average daily volume of 2,050,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 5.5 days.

Manulife Financial Stock Up 6.9 %

MFC stock traded up $2.05 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $31.83. 4,449,882 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,051,372. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $30.33 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $29.71. Manulife Financial has a 1-year low of $22.61 and a 1-year high of $33.07. The company has a market cap of $54.84 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.37, a PEG ratio of 1.04 and a beta of 1.09.

Manulife Financial (NYSE:MFC - Get Free Report) TSE: MFC last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 19th. The financial services provider reported $0.74 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.67 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $9.31 billion during the quarter. Manulife Financial had a return on equity of 16.11% and a net margin of 9.79%. Equities research analysts forecast that Manulife Financial will post 2.65 EPS for the current year.

Manulife Financial Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 19th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, March 5th will be paid a $0.3094 dividend. This is a boost from Manulife Financial's previous quarterly dividend of $0.30. This represents a $1.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.89%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, March 5th. Manulife Financial's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 59.42%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Manulife Financial

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. CWM LLC grew its stake in shares of Manulife Financial by 18.2% during the third quarter. CWM LLC now owns 15,072 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $445,000 after purchasing an additional 2,326 shares during the period. Creative Planning grew its stake in shares of Manulife Financial by 3.9% during the third quarter. Creative Planning now owns 173,349 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $5,122,000 after purchasing an additional 6,455 shares during the period. Tsfg LLC grew its stake in shares of Manulife Financial by 103.8% during the third quarter. Tsfg LLC now owns 1,404 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $42,000 after purchasing an additional 715 shares during the period. Sumitomo Life Insurance Co. grew its stake in shares of Manulife Financial by 3.1% during the third quarter. Sumitomo Life Insurance Co. now owns 30,773 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $909,000 after purchasing an additional 931 shares during the period. Finally, Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd grew its stake in shares of Manulife Financial by 3.1% during the third quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd now owns 30,773 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $909,000 after purchasing an additional 931 shares during the period. 52.56% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Manulife Financial Company 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.