Todd Asset Management LLC Sells 717 Shares of Manulife Financial Co. (NYSE:MFC)

Todd Asset Management LLC decreased its position in shares of Manulife Financial Co. (NYSE:MFC) (TSE:MFC) by 1.8% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 38,254 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 717 shares during the quarter. Todd Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Manulife Financial were worth $845,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in Manulife Financial by 1.5% in the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 71,526,674 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,307,508,000 after purchasing an additional 1,086,776 shares during the period. Legal & General Group Plc boosted its stake in Manulife Financial by 4.2% in the 3rd quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 11,138,365 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $204,468,000 after purchasing an additional 446,444 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its stake in Manulife Financial by 7.8% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 10,680,517 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $195,240,000 after purchasing an additional 775,135 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA boosted its stake in Manulife Financial by 1.3% in the 3rd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 9,445,466 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $172,663,000 after purchasing an additional 119,192 shares during the period. Finally, AustralianSuper Pty Ltd boosted its stake in Manulife Financial by 11.2% in the 4th quarter. AustralianSuper Pty Ltd now owns 5,793,161 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $128,019,000 after purchasing an additional 582,468 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 52.56% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

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

Manulife Financial Price Performance

Manulife Financial stock traded up $0.31 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $24.01. The company had a trading volume of 1,168,687 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,751,152. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $23.93 and a 200 day moving average price of $21.79. The firm has a market cap of $43.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.44, a P/E/G ratio of 0.88 and a beta of 1.08. Manulife Financial Co. has a 12-month low of $17.07 and a 12-month high of $25.14.

Manulife Financial (NYSE:MFC) (TSE:MFC) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 14th. The financial services provider reported $0.68 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.63 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $10.96 billion for 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, research analysts expect that Manulife Financial Co. will post 2.7 earnings per share for the current year.

Manulife Financial Increases Dividend

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