Bank of Nova Scotia Trims Position in Manulife Financial Corp $MFC

Bank of Nova Scotia decreased its position in Manulife Financial Corp (NYSE:MFC) (TSE:MFC) by 4.8% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 11,370,691 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 572,271 shares during the quarter. Manulife Financial makes up 0.6% of Bank of Nova Scotia’s portfolio, making the stock its 25th biggest holding. Bank of Nova Scotia owned 0.68% of Manulife Financial worth $391,595,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in MFC. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Manulife Financial in the fourth quarter worth approximately $777,229,000. MUFG Securities EMEA plc increased its holdings in Manulife Financial by 814.3% during 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 buying an additional 5,699,999 shares during the last quarter. Man Group plc increased its holdings in Manulife Financial by 194.9% during the fourth quarter. Man Group plc now owns 6,205,598 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $225,597,000 after buying an additional 4,101,390 shares during the last quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC raised its position in Manulife Financial by 1,975.2% in the fourth quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 4,045,488 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $147,312,000 after acquiring an additional 3,850,547 shares during the period. Finally, Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund raised its position in Manulife Financial by 931.1% in the fourth quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund now owns 4,124,519 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $149,778,000 after acquiring an additional 3,724,519 shares during the period. 52.56% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Manulife Financial Trading Up 0.1%

Shares of Manulife Financial stock opened at $43.06 on Friday. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $40.21 and a 200 day moving average of $37.91. Manulife Financial Corp has a 12 month low of $29.70 and a 12 month high of $43.56. The firm has a market cap of $71.57 billion, a PE ratio of 17.09 and a beta of 0.84.

Manulife Financial (NYSE:MFC) (TSE:MFC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 13th. The financial services provider reported $0.77 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.79 by ($0.02). The firm had revenue of $8.89 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.32 billion. Manulife Financial had a return on equity of 16.58% and a net margin of 10.19%.During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.99 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Manulife Financial Corp will post 3.03 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Manulife Financial Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 19th. Investors of record on Friday, May 29th were given a $0.485 dividend. This represents a $1.94 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.5%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 29th. Manulife Financial’s payout ratio is currently 56.75%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MFC has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Zacks Research downgraded shares of Manulife Financial from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 15th. TD Securities restated a “buy” rating on shares of Manulife Financial in a research note on Thursday, May 14th. Weiss Ratings cut Manulife Financial from a “buy (a-)” rating to a “buy (b+)” rating in a report on Tuesday. Finally, Scotiabank reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Manulife Financial in a research report on Wednesday, July 15th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have issued a Buy rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $51.50.

About Manulife Financial

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.