Erste Asset Management GmbH Sells 75,874 Shares of Manulife Financial Corp $MFC

Erste Asset Management GmbH lowered its stake in Manulife Financial Corp (NYSE:MFC) (TSE:MFC) by 52.7% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 68,000 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 75,874 shares during the period. Erste Asset Management GmbH’s holdings in Manulife Financial were worth $2,110,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Root Financial Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Manulife Financial in the third quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Caldwell Trust Co bought a new stake in Manulife Financial in the 2nd quarter valued at $27,000. Winnow Wealth LLC acquired a new position in Manulife Financial in the 2nd quarter valued at $38,000. Goodman Advisory Group LLC bought a new position in Manulife Financial during the 2nd quarter worth $39,000. Finally, Clearstead Trust LLC increased its position in Manulife Financial by 144.4% during the 3rd quarter. Clearstead Trust LLC now owns 1,256 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $39,000 after buying an additional 742 shares during the period. 52.56% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MFC has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. BMO Capital Markets reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Manulife Financial in a research report on Friday, November 14th. Scotiabank reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Manulife Financial in a report on Thursday, February 5th. Royal Bank Of Canada restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Manulife Financial in a research report on Friday, February 13th. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Manulife Financial from a “buy (a-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research report on Friday, February 13th. Finally, Morgan Stanley set a $51.00 price target on Manulife Financial in a research note on Monday, December 15th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and five have issued a Buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $51.50.

Manulife Financial Trading Down 0.8%

NYSE MFC opened at $35.55 on Friday. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $36.97 and its 200 day simple moving average is $34.13. The firm has a market capitalization of $59.60 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.01 and a beta of 0.83. Manulife Financial Corp has a 1 year low of $25.92 and a 1 year high of $38.72.

Manulife Financial (NYSE:MFC) (TSE:MFC) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 11th. The financial services provider reported $0.80 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.76 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $11.32 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.32 billion. Manulife Financial had a return on equity of 16.43% and a net margin of 9.18%.During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.03 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Manulife Financial Corp will post 2.87 earnings per share for the current year.

Manulife Financial Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 19th. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 25th will be given a dividend of $0.485 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, February 25th. This represents a $1.94 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.5%. This is an increase from Manulife Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.44. Manulife Financial’s dividend payout ratio is currently 63.51%.

Manulife Financial Profile

Manulife Financial Corporation is a multinational insurance and financial services company headquartered in Toronto, Ontario. Founded in the late 19th century as The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company, Manulife provides a broad range of financial products and services to individual and institutional clients. Its core businesses include life and health insurance, retirement and pension solutions, wealth and asset management, and group benefits.

In wealth and asset management, Manulife operates through Manulife Investment Management and offers mutual funds, segregated funds, institutional asset management, and retirement plan solutions.