Avanza Fonder AB Purchases New Stake in Manulife Financial Co. (NYSE:MFC)

Avanza Fonder AB purchased a new stake in Manulife Financial Co. (NYSE:MFC) (TSE:MFC) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 111,044 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $3,410,000.

Other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its holdings in Manulife Financial by 16.4% in the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 1,988,200 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $61,426,000 after acquiring an additional 279,418 shares during the last quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Manulife Financial by 148.9% during the third quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC now owns 73,346 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,382,000 after buying an additional 43,877 shares during the last quarter. BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp boosted its holdings in 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 worth $30,922,000 after buying an additional 1,072,474 shares during the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc boosted its holdings 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 worth $393,592,000 after buying an additional 75,244 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky bought a new position in Manulife Financial during the third quarter worth about $13,318,000. Institutional investors own 52.56% of the company’s stock.

Manulife Financial Trading Down 0.8 %

Shares of MFC opened at $30.58 on Friday. Manulife Financial Co. has a 1 year low of $20.78 and a 1 year high of $33.07. The stock has a market cap of $52.86 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.77, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.01 and a beta of 1.09. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $31.34 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $29.06.

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 (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.70 by $0.30. Manulife Financial had a return on equity of 16.11% and a net margin of 9.79%. The firm had revenue of $10.69 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.73 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.69 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Manulife Financial Co. will post 2.71 EPS for the current year.

Manulife Financial Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, December 19th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, November 20th were issued a dividend of $0.296 per share. This represents a $1.18 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.87%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, November 20th. This is a boost from Manulife Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.29. Manulife Financial’s payout ratio is 59.42%.

Manulife Financial Profile

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.