MML Investors Services LLC Acquires New Shares in Manulife Financial Co. (NYSE:MFC)

MML Investors Services LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Manulife Financial Co. (NYSE:MFC – Get Rating) (TSE:MFC) during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm acquired 21,329 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $334,000.

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. AXA S.A. lifted its holdings in Manulife Financial by 53.2% in the third quarter. AXA S.A. now owns 385,412 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $6,039,000 after acquiring an additional 133,919 shares during the period. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund lifted its holdings in Manulife Financial by 219.6% in the third quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund now owns 5,749,000 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $90,128,000 after acquiring an additional 3,950,000 shares during the period. FORA Capital LLC bought a new position in Manulife Financial in the third quarter valued at about $177,000. AustralianSuper Pty Ltd lifted its holdings in Manulife Financial by 38.8% in the third quarter. AustralianSuper Pty Ltd now owns 4,650,743 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $72,898,000 after acquiring an additional 1,300,000 shares during the period. Finally, Pictet Asset Management SA lifted its holdings in Manulife Financial by 59.1% in the third quarter. Pictet Asset Management SA now owns 1,147,265 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $18,102,000 after acquiring an additional 426,087 shares during the period. 43.42% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have recently commented on the company. Desjardins raised their price objective on Manulife Financial from C$26.00 to C$28.00 in a research note on Friday, February 17th. National Bank Financial increased their target price on Manulife Financial from C$26.00 to C$27.00 in a research report on Thursday, February 16th. TD Securities increased their target price on Manulife Financial from C$30.00 to C$32.00 in a research report on Thursday, February 16th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their target price on Manulife Financial from C$26.00 to C$28.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Friday, February 17th. Finally, Credit Suisse Group initiated coverage on Manulife Financial in a research report on Thursday, January 12th. They set a “neutral” rating for the company. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $29.29.

Manulife Financial Stock Performance

Shares of Manulife Financial stock opened at $19.12 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $35.53 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.78, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.82 and a beta of 1.13. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $19.30 and a 200-day moving average price of $17.84. Manulife Financial Co. has a one year low of $14.92 and a one year high of $21.85.

Manulife Financial Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 20th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 28th will be issued a $0.274 dividend. This is a boost from Manulife Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.24. The ex-dividend date is Monday, February 27th. This represents a $1.10 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.73%. Manulife Financial’s payout ratio is 39.01%.

Manulife Financial Profile

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Manulife Financial Corp. engages in the provision of financial services. It operates through the following segments: Asia, Canada, U.S., Global Wealth and Asset Management, and Corporate and Other. The Asia segment refers to insurance and insurance-based wealth accumulation products in Asia. The Canada segment offers insurance-based wealth accumulation products and banking services in Canada.