First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. Reduces Stake in Manulife Financial Co. (NYSE:MFC)

First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. cut its holdings in shares of Manulife Financial Co. (NYSE:MFC) (TSE:MFC) by 13.3% in the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 31,064 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 4,781 shares during the quarter. First Trust Direct Indexing L.P.’s holdings in Manulife Financial were worth $918,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the business. Toronto Dominion Bank raised its holdings in shares of Manulife Financial by 57.9% during the first quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank now owns 23,307,081 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $582,444,000 after purchasing an additional 8,548,114 shares during the last quarter. 1832 Asset Management L.P. raised its stake in shares of Manulife Financial by 103.1% during the 1st quarter. 1832 Asset Management L.P. now owns 14,686,893 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $367,025,000 after buying an additional 7,456,712 shares during the last quarter. National Bank of Canada FI lifted its holdings in shares of Manulife Financial by 14.8% in the 1st quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 28,803,968 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $749,435,000 after buying an additional 3,720,693 shares during the period. M&G Plc acquired a new position in shares of Manulife Financial in the 1st quarter valued at about $75,231,000. Finally, Acadian Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in Manulife Financial by 288.4% during the second quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 3,943,509 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $104,966,000 after acquiring an additional 2,928,316 shares during the period. 52.56% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Manulife Financial Trading Up 0.9 %

Shares of MFC opened at $29.47 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $51.83 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.03, a PEG ratio of 1.09 and a beta of 1.08. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $29.03 and its two-hundred day moving average is $26.78. Manulife Financial Co. has a 12 month low of $18.00 and a 12 month high of $30.86.

Manulife Financial (NYSE:MFC) (TSE:MFC) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 7th. The financial services provider reported $0.91 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.64 by $0.27. The company had revenue of $9.41 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.95 billion. Manulife Financial had a net margin of 9.18% and a return on equity of 16.16%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.62 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that Manulife Financial Co. will post 2.74 EPS for the current year.

Manulife Financial Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 19th. Investors of record on Wednesday, August 21st were given a dividend of $0.29 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, August 21st. This represents a $1.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.94%. Manulife Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 66.47%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have issued reports on the company. Barclays assumed coverage on Manulife Financial in a report on Thursday, September 5th. They issued an “equal weight” rating for the company. Dbs Bank raised shares of Manulife Financial to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 8th. 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. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Manulife Financial has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target 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.