Manulife Financial Co. (NYSE:MFC) Shares Sold by Hennessy Advisors Inc.

Hennessy Advisors Inc. trimmed its position in shares of Manulife Financial Co. (NYSE:MFC) (TSE:MFC) by 3.5% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 229,800 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 8,300 shares during the quarter. Hennessy Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Manulife Financial were worth $7,057,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in MFC. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV increased its stake in shares of Manulife Financial by 5.5% during the second quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV now owns 30,456 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $811,000 after acquiring an additional 1,589 shares during the period. Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC grew its position in Manulife Financial by 23.0% during the second quarter. Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC now owns 69,901 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,858,000 after buying an additional 13,069 shares during the period. Blair William & Co. IL grew its position in Manulife Financial by 14.3% during the second quarter. Blair William & Co. IL now owns 25,271 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $673,000 after buying an additional 3,171 shares during the period. WCG Wealth Advisors LLC grew its position in Manulife Financial by 51.9% during the second quarter. WCG Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 27,561 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $734,000 after buying an additional 9,414 shares during the period. Finally, Mark Sheptoff Financial Planning LLC acquired a new position in Manulife Financial during the second quarter worth about $80,000. 52.56% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Manulife Financial Trading Up 0.4 %

Shares of MFC opened at $30.81 on Friday. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $31.37 and its two-hundred day moving average is $29.05. Manulife Financial Co. has a twelve month low of $20.78 and a twelve month high of $33.07. The firm has a market capitalization of $53.26 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.88, a PEG ratio of 1.01 and a beta of 1.09.

Manulife Financial (NYSE:MFC) (TSE:MFC) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, November 6th. The financial services provider reported $1.00 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.70 by $0.30. Manulife Financial had a net margin of 9.79% and a return on equity of 16.11%. The company had revenue of $10.69 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.73 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.69 earnings per share. Analysts predict that Manulife Financial Co. will post 2.71 EPS for the current year.

Manulife Financial Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, December 19th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, November 20th were given a $0.296 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, November 20th. This is a positive change from Manulife Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.29. This represents a $1.18 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.84%. Manulife Financial’s dividend payout ratio is currently 59.42%.

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.