Manulife Financial Co. (NYSE:MFC) Shares Acquired by Ritholtz Wealth Management

Ritholtz Wealth Management lifted its position in Manulife Financial Co. (NYSE:MFC) (TSE:MFC) by 12.2% during the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 205,746 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 22,354 shares during the period. Ritholtz Wealth Management’s holdings in Manulife Financial were worth $6,080,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. FIL Ltd grew its holdings in shares of Manulife Financial by 750.5% during the fourth quarter. FIL Ltd now owns 9,910,281 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $218,990,000 after buying an additional 8,745,071 shares in the last quarter. Voisard Asset Management Group Inc. purchased a new position in Manulife Financial in the 4th quarter worth approximately $76,000. Integrated Advisors Network LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Manulife Financial by 17.2% during the 4th quarter. Integrated Advisors Network LLC now owns 18,746 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $414,000 after purchasing an additional 2,750 shares during the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Manulife Financial by 11.6% in the fourth quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 6,184,670 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $136,681,000 after purchasing an additional 644,820 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Creekmur Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Manulife Financial in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $30,000. 52.56% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Manulife Financial Trading Up 1.0 %

Manulife Financial stock traded up $0.30 during trading on Friday, hitting $30.39. The company had a trading volume of 1,006,465 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,653,510. The stock has a market cap of $53.45 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.57, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.09 and a beta of 1.08. Manulife Financial Co. has a 1-year low of $17.07 and a 1-year high of $30.52. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $27.66 and its 200-day simple moving average is $26.18.

Manulife Financial (NYSE:MFC) (TSE:MFC) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, August 7th. The financial services provider reported $0.91 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.64 by $0.27. Manulife Financial had a return on equity of 16.16% and a net margin of 9.18%. The company had revenue of $9.41 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.95 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.62 EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that Manulife Financial Co. will post 2.73 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Manulife Financial Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 19th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, August 21st were paid a $0.29 dividend. This represents a $1.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.82%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, August 21st. Manulife Financial’s payout ratio is currently 67.05%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have issued reports on MFC shares. Dbs Bank upgraded Manulife Financial to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 8th. Barclays initiated coverage on shares of Manulife Financial in a research note on Thursday, September 5th. They set an “equal weight” rating on the stock. Finally, TD Securities raised their price target on shares of Manulife Financial from $38.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, June 28th. One 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. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Manulife Financial currently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $35.67.

Manulife Financial Company 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.