Norges Bank Invests $654.75 Million in Manulife Financial Co. (NYSE:MFC)

Norges Bank 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. The fund purchased 21,340,230 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $654,751,000. Norges Bank owned approximately 1.24% of Manulife Financial as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Crews Bank & Trust purchased a new stake in shares of Manulife Financial in the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. Brooklyn Investment Group purchased a new stake in shares of Manulife Financial during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $26,000. Lee Danner & Bass Inc. bought a new position in shares of Manulife Financial during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Stonebridge Financial Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Manulife Financial in the fourth quarter valued at $34,000. Finally, Golden State Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Manulife Financial in the fourth quarter worth $35,000. Institutional investors own 52.56% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have commented on MFC. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price objective 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. Scotiabank restated an "outperform" rating on shares of Manulife Financial in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, four have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Manulife Financial presently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $45.50.

Remove Ads

Manulife Financial Trading Up 1.3 %

Shares of MFC stock traded up $0.40 during trading hours on Monday, reaching $31.16. 1,292,902 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,264,208. The firm has a market capitalization of $53.67 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.05, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.11 and a beta of 1.05. Manulife Financial Co. has a 12-month low of $22.61 and a 12-month high of $33.07. The company's 50-day moving average price is $30.14 and its 200-day moving average price is $30.44.

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

Manulife Financial Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 19th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, March 5th were paid a $0.3094 dividend. This is a positive change from Manulife Financial's previous quarterly dividend of $0.30. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, March 5th. This represents a $1.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.97%. Manulife Financial's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 58.45%.

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.