PDS Planning Inc Takes Position in Manulife Financial Co. (NYSE:MFC)

PDS Planning Inc purchased a new stake in Manulife Financial Co. (NYSE:MFC) (TSE:MFC) in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor purchased 9,223 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $204,000.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Manulife Financial by 1.5% in the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 71,526,674 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,307,508,000 after acquiring an additional 1,086,776 shares during the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc lifted its stake in shares of Manulife Financial by 4.2% in the 3rd quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 11,138,365 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $204,468,000 after acquiring an additional 446,444 shares during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its stake in shares of Manulife Financial by 7.8% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 10,680,517 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $195,240,000 after acquiring an additional 775,135 shares during the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA lifted its stake in shares of Manulife Financial by 1.3% in the 3rd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 9,445,466 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $172,663,000 after acquiring an additional 119,192 shares during the last quarter. Finally, AustralianSuper Pty Ltd lifted its stake in shares of Manulife Financial by 11.2% in the 4th quarter. AustralianSuper Pty Ltd now owns 5,793,161 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $128,019,000 after acquiring an additional 582,468 shares during the last quarter. 52.56% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Manulife Financial Stock Up 0.6 %

Manulife Financial stock opened at $23.59 on Wednesday. Manulife Financial Co. has a 52 week low of $17.07 and a 52 week high of $25.14. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $24.03 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $21.55. The stock has a market cap of $42.49 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.22, a P/E/G ratio of 0.87 and a beta of 1.08.

Manulife Financial (NYSE:MFC) (TSE:MFC) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 14th. The financial services provider reported $0.68 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.63 by $0.05. The company had revenue of $10.96 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.57 billion. Manulife Financial had a net margin of 10.42% and a return on equity of 15.98%. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Manulife Financial Co. will post 2.71 EPS for the current year.

Manulife Financial Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 19th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, February 28th were issued a dividend of $0.298 per share. This is a boost from Manulife Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.26. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 27th. This represents a $1.19 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.05%. Manulife Financial’s payout ratio is presently 61.66%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MFC has been the subject of several analyst reports. BMO Capital Markets raised Manulife Financial from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and raised their target price for the stock from $31.00 to $35.00 in a research report on Thursday, February 15th. Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on Manulife Financial in a research report on Thursday, February 22nd. They set a “buy” rating for the company. Finally, Desjardins raised Manulife Financial from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 15th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $33.33.

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.