Letko Brosseau & Associates Inc. Reduces Position in Manulife Financial Corp $MFC

Letko Brosseau & Associates Inc. lessened its position in Manulife Financial Corp (NYSE:MFC) (TSE:MFC) by 1.0% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 6,151,217 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 63,250 shares during the quarter. Manulife Financial comprises about 3.7% of Letko Brosseau & Associates Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 6th biggest position. Letko Brosseau & Associates Inc. owned about 0.37% of Manulife Financial worth $223,656,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Basepoint Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in Manulife Financial in the 4th quarter worth $25,000. Hantz Financial Services Inc. acquired a new stake in Manulife Financial in the 4th quarter worth $28,000. Blueline Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Manulife Financial in the 4th quarter worth $34,000. Wolff Wiese Magana LLC grew its position in Manulife Financial by 269.2% in the 4th quarter. Wolff Wiese Magana LLC now owns 960 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 700 shares during the last quarter. Finally, American Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Manulife Financial in the 3rd quarter worth $36,000. Institutional investors own 52.56% of the company’s stock.

Manulife Financial Stock Performance

Shares of Manulife Financial stock opened at $38.83 on Wednesday. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $37.98 and its 200-day simple moving average is $36.66. Manulife Financial Corp has a twelve month low of $29.70 and a twelve month high of $40.40. The firm has a market cap of $64.80 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.41 and a beta of 0.84.

Manulife Financial (NYSE:MFC) (TSE:MFC) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, May 13th. The financial services provider reported $0.77 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.79 by ($0.02). Manulife Financial had a net margin of 10.19% and a return on equity of 16.58%. The business had revenue of $8.89 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.32 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.99 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts forecast that Manulife Financial Corp will post 3.2 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Manulife Financial Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 19th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 29th will be given a dividend of $0.485 per share. This represents a $1.94 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.0%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 29th. Manulife Financial’s payout ratio is 56.75%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MFC has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Manulife Financial from a “buy (b+)” rating to a “buy (a-)” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 28th. Scotiabank restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Manulife Financial in a research report on Wednesday, April 29th. Royal Bank Of Canada restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Manulife Financial in a research report on Friday, February 13th. Finally, TD Securities restated a “buy” rating on shares of Manulife Financial in a research report on Thursday, May 14th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and five have issued a Buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $51.50.

Manulife Financial Company Profile

Manulife Financial Corporation is a multinational insurance and financial services company headquartered in Toronto, Ontario. Founded in the late 19th century as The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company, Manulife provides a broad range of financial products and services to individual and institutional clients. Its core businesses include life and health insurance, retirement and pension solutions, wealth and asset management, and group benefits.

In wealth and asset management, Manulife operates through Manulife Investment Management and offers mutual funds, segregated funds, institutional asset management, and retirement plan solutions.