AGF Management Ltd. Lowers Stock Holdings in Manulife Financial Co. (NYSE:MFC)

AGF Management Ltd. trimmed its stake in Manulife Financial Co. (NYSE:MFC) (TSE:MFC) by 10.8% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 1,490,961 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 180,596 shares during the period. AGF Management Ltd.’s holdings in Manulife Financial were worth $39,689,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Manulife Financial by 1.0% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 72,289,251 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,806,508,000 after purchasing an additional 727,764 shares during the period. TD Asset Management Inc lifted its position in shares of Manulife Financial by 26.5% in the 4th quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 37,066,418 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $823,074,000 after purchasing an additional 7,766,870 shares during the period. National Bank of Canada FI lifted its position 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 worth $749,435,000 after purchasing an additional 3,720,693 shares during the period. Toronto Dominion Bank lifted its position in shares of Manulife Financial by 57.9% in the 1st 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 period. Finally, Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Manulife Financial in the 4th quarter worth approximately $473,568,000. 52.56% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Manulife Financial Stock Up 0.7 %

NYSE:MFC opened at $27.65 on Thursday. Manulife Financial Co. has a 52 week low of $17.07 and a 52 week high of $27.82. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $26.40 and a 200 day moving average of $25.39. The stock has a market capitalization of $48.94 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.08, a PEG ratio of 0.99 and a beta of 1.08.

Manulife Financial (NYSE:MFC) (TSE:MFC) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 7th. The financial services provider reported $0.91 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.64 by $0.27. Manulife Financial had a net margin of 9.18% and a return on equity of 16.16%. The business had revenue of $9.41 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.95 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.62 EPS. As a group, analysts expect that Manulife Financial Co. will post 2.72 EPS for the current year.

Manulife Financial Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 19th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, August 21st will be paid a dividend of $0.29 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, August 21st. This represents a $1.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.20%. Manulife Financial’s payout ratio is 67.44%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on MFC. Barclays began coverage on shares of Manulife Financial in a research 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 research report on Thursday, August 8th. Finally, TD Securities increased their target price 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. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price 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.