Vestmark Advisory Solutions Inc. Takes Position in Manulife Financial Co. (NYSE:MFC)

Vestmark Advisory Solutions Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Manulife Financial Co. (NYSE:MFC) (TSE:MFC) during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund bought 7,744 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $238,000.

A number of other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. National Bank of Canada FI boosted its stake in shares of Manulife Financial by 13.5% during 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 purchasing an additional 3,329,892 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Manulife Financial by 8.1% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 8,273,260 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $247,473,000 after acquiring an additional 616,517 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its stake in Manulife Financial by 3.1% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 5,186,930 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $153,455,000 after acquiring an additional 158,216 shares in the last quarter. Alberta Investment Management Corp boosted its stake in Manulife Financial by 5.1% during the fourth quarter. Alberta Investment Management Corp now owns 4,896,049 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $150,333,000 after acquiring an additional 236,808 shares in the last quarter. Finally, The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company boosted its stake in Manulife Financial by 1.8% during the third quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 2,035,663 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $60,202,000 after acquiring an additional 36,838 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 52.56% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently commented on MFC shares. Scotiabank reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Manulife Financial in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Royal Bank of Canada boosted 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. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, four have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $45.50.

Manulife Financial Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE MFC opened at $29.23 on Monday. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $30.25 and its 200-day moving average price is $30.15. The company has a market cap of $50.37 billion, a PE ratio of 14.12, a P/E/G ratio of 1.11 and a beta of 1.05. Manulife Financial Co. has a 52-week low of $22.61 and a 52-week high of $33.07.

Manulife Financial (NYSE:MFC) (TSE:MFC) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, February 19th. The financial services provider reported $0.74 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.67 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $9.31 billion for the quarter. Manulife Financial had a net margin of 10.08% and a return on equity of 15.98%. On average, analysts forecast that Manulife Financial Co. will post 2.87 earnings per share for the current fiscal 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 represents a $1.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.23%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, March 5th. This is an increase from Manulife Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.30. Manulife Financial’s dividend payout ratio is currently 58.45%.

About Manulife Financial

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.