Creative Planning Grows Position in Manulife Financial Corp $MFC

Creative Planning raised its position in Manulife Financial Corp (NYSE:MFC) (TSE:MFC) by 3.8% in the second quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 230,820 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 8,513 shares during the period. Creative Planning’s holdings in Manulife Financial were worth $7,377,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Manulife Financial by 0.5% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 74,333,649 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,316,162,000 after acquiring an additional 369,638 shares during the period. TD Asset Management Inc grew its position in Manulife Financial by 6.6% during the 1st quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 37,093,064 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,155,639,000 after purchasing an additional 2,289,205 shares during the last quarter. 1832 Asset Management L.P. increased its stake in Manulife Financial by 7.3% in the first quarter. 1832 Asset Management L.P. now owns 24,425,465 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $760,853,000 after purchasing an additional 1,660,626 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Manulife Financial by 19.4% in the second quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 14,008,595 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $453,798,000 after buying an additional 2,276,251 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bank of Nova Scotia boosted its stake in shares of Manulife Financial by 7.2% during the first quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia now owns 13,990,810 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $436,007,000 after buying an additional 937,794 shares during the period. 52.56% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Manulife Financial Price Performance

Manulife Financial stock opened at $33.88 on Thursday. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $32.29 and its 200 day moving average price is $31.51. Manulife Financial Corp has a 1-year low of $25.92 and a 1-year high of $35.57. The company has a market cap of $57.08 billion, a PE ratio of 15.12, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.13 and a beta of 0.98.

Manulife Financial (NYSE:MFC) (TSE:MFC) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, November 12th. The financial services provider reported $0.84 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.74 by $0.10. The company had revenue of $12.90 billion during the quarter. Manulife Financial had a return on equity of 15.77% and a net margin of 10.46%.During the same period last year, the business posted $1.00 EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Manulife Financial Corp 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 Friday, December 19th. Investors of record on Wednesday, November 26th will be paid a $0.44 dividend. This represents a $1.76 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.2%. This is a positive change from Manulife Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.32. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, November 26th. Manulife Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 55.56%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on MFC shares. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their price target on Manulife Financial from $49.00 to $52.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, November 14th. Morgan Stanley set a $47.00 target price on Manulife Financial in a research note on Tuesday, October 7th. BMO Capital Markets restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Manulife Financial in a research note on Friday, November 14th. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Manulife Financial from a “buy (a-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research report on Monday. Finally, UBS Group assumed coverage on shares of Manulife Financial in a research report on Thursday, October 16th. They set a “buy” rating for the company. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $49.50.

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.