Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. Acquires 12,654 Shares of Manulife Financial Co. (NYSE:MFC)

Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. increased its holdings in shares of Manulife Financial Co. (NYSE:MFC) (TSE:MFC) by 180.6% during the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 19,661 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 12,654 shares during the period. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co.’s holdings in Manulife Financial were worth $581,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Manulife Financial by 1,210.7% during the second quarter. BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp now owns 1,161,059 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $30,922,000 after purchasing an additional 1,072,474 shares during the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc raised its stake in Manulife Financial by 0.5% during the second quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 14,783,400 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $393,592,000 after buying an additional 75,244 shares during the last quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank raised its stake in Manulife Financial by 3.2% during the second quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank now owns 24,057,503 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $640,411,000 after buying an additional 750,422 shares during the last quarter. Sumitomo Life Insurance Co. bought a new stake in Manulife Financial in the second quarter worth $794,000. Finally, International Assets Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Manulife Financial in the third quarter worth $956,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 52.56% of the company’s stock.

Manulife Financial Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:MFC opened at $31.84 on Wednesday. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $30.53 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $27.81. Manulife Financial Co. has a fifty-two week low of $19.20 and a fifty-two week high of $33.07. The firm has a market cap of $55.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.38, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.18 and a beta of 1.08.

Manulife Financial (NYSE:MFC) (TSE:MFC) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 6th. The financial services provider reported $1.00 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.70 by $0.30. The firm had revenue of $10.69 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.73 billion. Manulife Financial had a return on equity of 16.11% and a net margin of 9.79%. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.69 EPS. As a group, research analysts predict that Manulife Financial Co. will post 2.74 earnings per share for the current year.

Manulife Financial Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 19th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, November 20th will be given a dividend of $0.296 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, November 20th. This represents a $1.18 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.72%. This is a positive change from Manulife Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.29. Manulife Financial’s dividend payout ratio is presently 57.00%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently issued reports on MFC. Dbs Bank raised Manulife Financial to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 8th. Barclays initiated coverage on shares of Manulife Financial in a research note on Thursday, September 5th. They issued an “equal weight” rating on the stock. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Manulife Financial currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $37.50.

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.