SVB Wealth LLC Makes New Investment in Manulife Financial Co. (NYSE:MFC)

SVB Wealth LLC purchased a new position in shares of Manulife Financial Co. (NYSE:MFC - Free Report) TSE: MFC in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 12,890 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $396,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. National Bank of Canada FI lifted its holdings in shares of Manulife Financial by 13.5% in the 3rd quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 28,063,936 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $829,374,000 after buying an additional 3,329,892 shares during the period. Bridgewater Associates LP lifted its holdings in shares of Manulife Financial by 169.6% in the 3rd quarter. Bridgewater Associates LP now owns 1,404,481 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $41,554,000 after buying an additional 883,624 shares during the period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. lifted its holdings in shares of Manulife Financial by 1,067.3% in the 4th quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 686,418 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $21,080,000 after buying an additional 627,614 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Manulife Financial by 8.1% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 8,273,260 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $247,473,000 after buying an additional 616,517 shares during the period. Finally, Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund acquired a new position in shares of Manulife Financial in the 3rd quarter valued at about $17,412,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 52.56% of the company's stock.

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Manulife Financial Trading Down 0.5 %

NYSE:MFC traded down $0.14 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $29.23. 2,730,015 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,983,671. The company has a market cap of $50.37 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.12, a P/E/G ratio of 1.11 and a beta of 1.05. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $30.25 and its 200 day moving average price is $30.09. Manulife Financial Co. has a 52-week low of $22.61 and a 52-week high of $33.07.

Manulife Financial (NYSE:MFC - Get Free Report) TSE: MFC last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 19th. The financial services provider reported $0.74 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.67 by $0.07. Manulife Financial had a return on equity of 15.98% and a net margin of 10.08%. The firm had revenue of $9.31 billion for the quarter. Equities analysts expect that Manulife Financial Co. will post 2.87 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Manulife Financial Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 19th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, March 5th will be given a dividend of $0.3094 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, March 5th. This represents a $1.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.23%. This is a positive change from Manulife Financial's previous quarterly dividend of $0.30. Manulife Financial's dividend payout ratio is currently 58.45%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MFC has been the subject of several analyst reports. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price objective on Manulife Financial from $49.00 to $51.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, February 21st. Scotiabank reissued an "outperform" rating on shares of Manulife Financial in a report on Monday, February 3rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, four have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $45.50.

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.