Harvest Portfolios Group Inc. Takes Position in Manulife Financial Co. (NYSE:MFC)

Harvest Portfolios Group Inc. acquired a new stake in Manulife Financial Co. (NYSE:MFC) (TSE:MFC) in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 132,291 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $2,428,000.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. BlackRock Inc. lifted its position in Manulife Financial by 10.1% during the first quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 878,359 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $18,753,000 after purchasing an additional 80,450 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Trust N.A. lifted its position in Manulife Financial by 7.9% during the first quarter. Raymond James Trust N.A. now owns 27,503 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $587,000 after purchasing an additional 2,013 shares during the last quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers bought a new stake in shares of Manulife Financial in the 1st quarter worth approximately $428,000. Moors & Cabot Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Manulife Financial by 2.3% in the 1st quarter. Moors & Cabot Inc. now owns 43,078 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $920,000 after acquiring an additional 956 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Manulife Financial by 32.7% in the 1st quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 14,560 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $311,000 after acquiring an additional 3,585 shares during the last quarter. 45.02% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Manulife Financial Price Performance

Shares of Manulife Financial stock opened at $18.85 on Thursday. The company has a 50-day moving average of $18.90 and a 200 day moving average of $18.94. The firm has a market cap of $34.47 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.85, a PEG ratio of 0.76 and a beta of 1.12. Manulife Financial Co. has a 1 year low of $14.92 and a 1 year high of $20.40.

Manulife Financial (NYSE:MFC) (TSE:MFC) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 9th. The financial services provider reported $0.62 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.60 by $0.02. Manulife Financial had a net margin of 11.87% and a return on equity of 13.53%. The company had revenue of $9 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $11.31 billion. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Manulife Financial Co. will post 2.44 EPS for the current year.

Manulife Financial Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 19th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, August 23rd will be issued a dividend of $0.276 per share. This represents a $1.10 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.86%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, August 22nd. This is an increase from Manulife Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.27. Manulife Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 52.11%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on MFC. StockNews.com began coverage on shares of Manulife Financial in a report on Thursday, August 17th. They issued a “hold” rating for the company. Barclays upped their price target on shares of Manulife Financial from $31.00 to $33.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, August 11th.

Manulife Financial Profile

Manulife Financial Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, provides financial products and services in Asia, Canada, the United States, 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.