OLD National Bancorp IN Invests $242,000 in Manulife Financial Co. (NYSE:MFC)

OLD National Bancorp IN purchased a new stake in shares of Manulife Financial Co. (NYSE:MFC) (TSE:MFC) during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 8,198 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $242,000.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of MFC. Blue Trust Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Manulife Financial by 78.7% in the 3rd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 22,903 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $677,000 after purchasing an additional 10,083 shares during the period. Dixon Mitchell Investment Counsel Inc. increased its stake in Manulife Financial by 8.0% in the 3rd quarter. Dixon Mitchell Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 550,226 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $16,279,000 after buying an additional 40,748 shares during the period. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd lifted its position in Manulife Financial by 3.1% in the 3rd quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd now owns 30,773 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $909,000 after buying an additional 931 shares in the last quarter. Sumitomo Life Insurance Co. boosted its stake in shares of Manulife Financial by 3.1% during the 3rd quarter. Sumitomo Life Insurance Co. now owns 30,773 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $909,000 after buying an additional 931 shares during the period. Finally, Tsfg LLC grew its holdings in shares of Manulife Financial by 103.8% during the 3rd quarter. Tsfg LLC now owns 1,404 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $42,000 after acquiring an additional 715 shares in the last quarter. 52.56% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Manulife Financial Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE MFC opened at $30.04 on Thursday. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $28.53 and its 200-day simple moving average is $26.51. Manulife Financial Co. has a 52 week low of $17.07 and a 52 week high of $30.86. The firm has a market cap of $53.75 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.46, a P/E/G ratio of 1.09 and a beta of 1.08.

Manulife Financial (NYSE:MFC) (TSE:MFC) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 7th. The financial services provider reported $0.91 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.64 by $0.27. The company had revenue of $9.41 billion for 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 last year, the firm posted $0.62 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Manulife Financial Co. will post 2.73 earnings per share for the current year.

Manulife Financial Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 19th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, August 21st were issued a dividend of $0.29 per share. This represents a $1.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.86%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, August 21st. Manulife Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 66.86%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MFC has been the subject of a number of research reports. Dbs Bank raised Manulife Financial to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 8th. Barclays began coverage on Manulife Financial in a research note on Thursday, September 5th. They issued an “equal weight” rating for the company. Finally, TD Securities raised their price objective on shares of Manulife Financial from $38.00 to $40.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, June 28th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $35.67.

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.