Manulife Financial Corp (MFC) To Go Ex-Dividend on August 21st

Manulife Financial Corp (NYSE:MFC) (TSE:MFC) declared a quarterly dividend on Wednesday, August 5th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 21st will be given a dividend of 0.485 per share by the financial services provider on Monday, September 21st. This represents a c) annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.4%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 21st.

Manulife Financial has increased its dividend by an average of 0.1%annually over the last three years and has increased its dividend annually for the last 12 consecutive years. Manulife Financial has a dividend payout ratio of 44.7% indicating that its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Research analysts expect Manulife Financial to earn $3.26 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $1.42 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 43.6%.

Manulife Financial Trading Up 0.3%

MFC stock opened at $44.58 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $41.40 and a 200-day simple moving average of $38.42. The company has a market capitalization of $74.09 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.64 and a beta of 0.84. Manulife Financial has a twelve month low of $29.70 and a twelve month high of $45.33.

Manulife Financial (NYSE:MFC) (TSE:MFC) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The financial services provider reported $0.79 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.78 by $0.01. Manulife Financial had a net margin of 9.99% and a return on equity of 16.86%. The firm had revenue of $2.22 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.28 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.95 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 7.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts predict that Manulife Financial will post 3.03 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Manulife Financial

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Basepoint Wealth LLC bought a new position in shares of Manulife Financial during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Hantz Financial Services Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Manulife Financial in the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. Canerector Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Manulife Financial by 27.0% in the 1st quarter. Canerector Inc. now owns 800,000 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 170,000 shares during the last quarter. Sfam LLC acquired a new position in Manulife Financial during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Finally, Farmers & Merchants Trust Co of Chambersburg PA acquired a new position in Manulife Financial during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 52.56% of the company’s stock.

Manulife Financial Company Profile

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.