NBC Securities Inc. Raises Stock Holdings in Manulife Financial Co. (NYSE:MFC)

NBC Securities Inc. lifted its holdings in Manulife Financial Co. (NYSE:MFC) (TSE:MFC) by 178,700.0% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 1,788 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 1,787 shares during the quarter. NBC Securities Inc.’s holdings in Manulife Financial were worth $55,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the business. FIL Ltd raised its holdings in shares of Manulife Financial by 21.7% in the fourth quarter. FIL Ltd now owns 39,610,614 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,216,880,000 after buying an additional 7,053,066 shares during the period. TD Asset Management Inc. increased its holdings in Manulife Financial by 0.7% during the 4th quarter. TD Asset Management Inc. now owns 34,803,859 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,068,654,000 after purchasing an additional 228,863 shares during the period. Mackenzie Financial Corp increased its holdings in Manulife Financial by 0.9% during the 4th quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 24,614,416 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $755,367,000 after purchasing an additional 230,105 shares during the period. Toronto Dominion Bank increased its holdings in Manulife Financial by 4.1% during the 4th quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank now owns 22,812,909 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $699,948,000 after purchasing an additional 902,466 shares during the period. Finally, Norges Bank purchased a new position in Manulife Financial during the 4th quarter worth $654,751,000. 52.56% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Manulife Financial Trading Down 0.1%

Shares of NYSE:MFC opened at $32.01 on Thursday. Manulife Financial Co. has a 12-month low of $23.30 and a 12-month high of $33.07. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $30.55 and its 200-day simple moving average is $30.54. The company has a market capitalization of $54.82 billion, a PE ratio of 15.46, a P/E/G ratio of 1.11 and a beta of 1.01.

Manulife Financial (NYSE:MFC) (TSE:MFC) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 7th. The financial services provider reported $0.69 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.70 by ($0.01). Manulife Financial had a net margin of 10.08% and a return on equity of 15.98%. The company had revenue of $1.49 billion during the quarter. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.94 EPS. Research analysts predict that Manulife Financial Co. will post 2.87 EPS for the current year.

Manulife Financial Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 19th. Investors of record on Wednesday, May 21st will be paid a dividend of $0.3194 per share. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.99%. This is an increase from Manulife Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.31. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, May 21st. Manulife Financial’s payout ratio is 66.49%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MFC has been the topic of several research reports. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price objective on Manulife Financial from $49.00 to $51.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, February 21st. Morgan Stanley set a $46.00 price objective on Manulife Financial in a report on Monday, May 19th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, three have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $45.67.

About Manulife Financial

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.