Measured Wealth Private Client Group LLC Sells 6,311 Shares of Manulife Financial Co. (NYSE:MFC)

Measured Wealth Private Client Group LLC decreased its holdings in shares of Manulife Financial Co. (NYSE:MFC) (TSE:MFC) by 14.6% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 37,025 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 6,311 shares during the period. Measured Wealth Private Client Group LLC’s holdings in Manulife Financial were worth $818,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MFC. Public Sector Pension Investment Board boosted its stake in Manulife Financial by 694.2% in the 3rd quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 3,984,024 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $73,139,000 after buying an additional 3,482,367 shares in the last quarter. Grantham Mayo Van Otterloo & Co. LLC increased its position in shares of Manulife Financial by 45.7% during the 3rd quarter. Grantham Mayo Van Otterloo & Co. LLC now owns 3,932,971 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $72,085,000 after purchasing an additional 1,233,358 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Manulife Financial by 1.5% during the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 71,526,674 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,307,508,000 after purchasing an additional 1,086,776 shares during the last quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC lifted its holdings in Manulife Financial by 21.5% during the 3rd quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 5,005,072 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $91,508,000 after purchasing an additional 885,979 shares during the last quarter. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its position in Manulife Financial by 7.8% in the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 10,680,517 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $195,240,000 after buying an additional 775,135 shares in the last quarter. 52.56% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on shares of Manulife Financial in a research note on Thursday, February 22nd. They issued a “buy” rating for the company. Desjardins upgraded Manulife Financial from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, February 15th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets raised Manulife Financial from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $31.00 to $35.00 in a report on Thursday, February 15th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $33.33.

Manulife Financial Trading Up 1.3 %

Shares of Manulife Financial stock traded up $0.31 during trading on Friday, reaching $24.01. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 1,168,687 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,751,152. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $23.93 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $21.79. Manulife Financial Co. has a one year low of $17.07 and a one year high of $25.14. The stock has a market capitalization of $43.25 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.44, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.88 and a beta of 1.08.

Manulife Financial (NYSE:MFC) (TSE:MFC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 14th. The financial services provider reported $0.68 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.63 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $10.96 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.57 billion. Manulife Financial had a return on equity of 15.98% and a net margin of 10.42%. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Manulife Financial Co. will post 2.7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Manulife Financial Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 19th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, February 28th were issued a dividend of $0.298 per share. This is a boost from Manulife Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.26. This represents a $1.19 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.96%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 27th. Manulife Financial’s payout ratio is currently 61.66%.

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.