Bank of New York Mellon Corp Decreases Stock Holdings in Manulife Financial Corp (NYSE:MFC)

Bank of New York Mellon Corp trimmed its stake in shares of Manulife Financial Corp (NYSE:MFC) (TSE:MFC) by 1.9% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,775,702 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 34,072 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp owned approximately 0.10% of Manulife Financial worth $55,313,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Lee Danner & Bass Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Manulife Financial during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Lazard Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Manulife Financial during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Transce3nd LLC purchased a new position in shares of Manulife Financial during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $42,000. Millstone Evans Group LLC purchased a new stake in Manulife Financial during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $44,000. Finally, Graney & King LLC purchased a new stake in Manulife Financial during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $53,000. 52.56% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Manulife Financial Trading Down 0.8%

Shares of MFC stock opened at $30.47 on Friday. Manulife Financial Corp has a 12 month low of $23.30 and a 12 month high of $33.07. The stock has a market cap of $52.04 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.95, a P/E/G ratio of 1.04 and a beta of 0.99. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $31.47 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $30.51.

Manulife Financial (NYSE:MFC) (TSE:MFC) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, May 7th. The financial services provider reported $0.69 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.70 by ($0.01). Manulife Financial had a net margin of 9.58% and a return on equity of 15.84%. The business had revenue of $1.49 billion for the quarter. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.94 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Manulife Financial Corp will post 2.87 earnings per share for the current year.

Manulife Financial Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 19th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, May 21st were issued a dividend of $0.3194 per share. This is a boost from Manulife Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.31. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.19%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, May 21st. Manulife Financial’s dividend payout ratio is currently 66.49%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, Morgan Stanley set a $46.00 target price on shares of Manulife Financial in a report on Monday, May 19th.

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.