CIBC Asset Management Inc Sells 2,621,796 Shares of Manulife Financial Corp $MFC

CIBC Asset Management Inc reduced its holdings in shares of Manulife Financial Corp (NYSE:MFC) (TSE:MFC) by 15.1% in the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 14,740,360 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 2,621,796 shares during the quarter. Manulife Financial accounts for about 1.3% of CIBC Asset Management Inc’s holdings, making the stock its 20th biggest position. CIBC Asset Management Inc owned approximately 0.87% of Manulife Financial worth $461,027,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Manulife Financial during the 2nd quarter valued at about $632,238,000. MUFG Securities EMEA plc lifted its holdings in shares of Manulife Financial by 814.3% in the second quarter. MUFG Securities EMEA plc now owns 6,399,999 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $204,544,000 after purchasing an additional 5,699,999 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Manulife Financial by 19.4% during the second quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 14,008,595 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $453,798,000 after buying an additional 2,276,251 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in Manulife Financial by 2.7% during the second quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 76,336,875 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,440,795,000 after buying an additional 2,003,226 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Picton Mahoney Asset Management bought a new stake in Manulife Financial during the second quarter worth $63,255,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 52.56% of the company’s stock.

Manulife Financial Stock Up 0.6%

Manulife Financial stock opened at $36.97 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $35.97 and a 200-day moving average price of $33.01. Manulife Financial Corp has a twelve month low of $25.92 and a twelve month high of $37.71. The company has a market capitalization of $62.01 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.43 and a beta of 0.83.

Manulife Financial (NYSE:MFC) (TSE:MFC) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 12th. The financial services provider reported $0.84 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.74 by $0.10. Manulife Financial had a return on equity of 16.11% and a net margin of 9.81%.The business had revenue of $12.90 billion for the quarter. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.00 EPS. Equities analysts expect that Manulife Financial Corp will post 2.87 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Manulife Financial Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 19th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, November 26th were issued a dividend of $0.44 per share. This represents a $1.76 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.8%. This is a boost from Manulife Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.32. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, November 26th. Manulife Financial’s payout ratio is currently 55.56%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on the stock. UBS Group initiated coverage on shares of Manulife Financial in a report on Thursday, October 16th. They set a “buy” rating on the stock. BMO Capital Markets restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Manulife Financial in a report on Friday, November 14th. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their price objective on shares of Manulife Financial from $49.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, November 14th. Morgan Stanley set a $51.00 target price on shares of Manulife Financial in a research report on Monday, December 15th. Finally, Cibc Captl Mkts raised Manulife Financial from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, January 8th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and six have given a Buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $51.50.

Manulife Financial 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.