Blue Trust Inc. Buys 10,083 Shares of Manulife Financial Co. (NYSE:MFC)

Blue Trust Inc. grew its position in shares of Manulife Financial Co. (NYSE:MFC) (TSE:MFC) by 78.7% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 22,903 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 10,083 shares during the quarter. Blue Trust Inc.’s holdings in Manulife Financial were worth $677,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of MFC. West Financial Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Manulife Financial during the third quarter valued at $26,000. Grove Bank & Trust acquired a new stake in Manulife Financial during the second quarter worth approximately $25,000. Addison Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Manulife Financial by 77.2% in the second quarter. Addison Advisors LLC now owns 1,072 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 467 shares in the last quarter. HHM Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Manulife Financial by 119.0% in the second quarter. HHM Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,104 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 600 shares during the period. Finally, Sachetta LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Manulife Financial by 209.5% during the 2nd quarter. Sachetta LLC now owns 1,170 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 792 shares in the last quarter. 52.56% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

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

Manulife Financial Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE MFC opened at $30.04 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap of $53.76 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.47, a PEG ratio of 1.09 and a beta of 1.08. Manulife Financial Co. has a fifty-two week low of $17.07 and a fifty-two week high of $30.86. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $28.36 and its 200 day simple moving average is $26.44.

Manulife Financial (NYSE:MFC) (TSE:MFC) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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. The business had revenue of $9.41 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $8.95 billion. Manulife Financial had a return on equity of 16.16% and a net margin of 9.18%. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.62 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Manulife Financial Co. will post 2.73 EPS for the current year.

Manulife Financial Dividend Announcement

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

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.