SG Trading Solutions LLC Buys New Shares in Manulife Financial Corp $MFC

SG Trading Solutions LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Manulife Financial Corp (NYSE:MFC) (TSE:MFC) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm acquired 12,897 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $468,000.

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Basepoint Wealth LLC purchased a new position in shares of Manulife Financial in the fourth quarter valued at about $25,000. Hantz Financial Services Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Manulife Financial during the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. Sfam LLC purchased a new position in shares of Manulife Financial in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Heritage Wealth Advisors bought a new stake in shares of Manulife Financial during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Finally, Blueline Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Manulife Financial during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $34,000. 52.56% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Manulife Financial Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE MFC opened at $40.66 on Friday. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $38.85 and its 200-day moving average price is $36.96. Manulife Financial Corp has a 52-week low of $29.70 and a 52-week high of $41.43. The company has a market cap of $67.86 billion, a PE ratio of 16.13 and a beta of 0.84.

Manulife Financial (NYSE:MFC) (TSE:MFC) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, May 13th. The financial services provider reported $0.77 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.79 by ($0.02). Manulife Financial had a return on equity of 16.58% and a net margin of 10.19%.The business had revenue of $8.89 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.32 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.99 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that Manulife Financial Corp will post 3.2 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Manulife Financial Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 19th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 29th were given a $0.485 dividend. This represents a $1.94 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 29th. Manulife Financial’s payout ratio is 56.75%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on MFC shares. Weiss Ratings upgraded Manulife Financial from a “buy (b+)” rating to a “buy (a-)” rating in a report on Thursday, May 28th. Scotiabank restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Manulife Financial in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. Finally, TD Securities reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Manulife Financial in a research report on Thursday, May 14th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and five have given a Buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $51.50.

About Manulife Financial

Manulife Financial Corporation is a multinational insurance and financial services company headquartered in Toronto, Ontario. Founded in the late 19th century as The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company, Manulife provides a broad range of financial products and services to individual and institutional clients. Its core businesses include life and health insurance, retirement and pension solutions, wealth and asset management, and group benefits.

In wealth and asset management, Manulife operates through Manulife Investment Management and offers mutual funds, segregated funds, institutional asset management, and retirement plan solutions.