Lombard Odier Asset Management Europe Ltd Reduces Stock Position in Manulife Financial Corp $MFC

Lombard Odier Asset Management Europe Ltd decreased its position in Manulife Financial Corp (NYSE:MFC) (TSE:MFC) by 22.2% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 535,006 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 152,966 shares during the quarter. Manulife Financial comprises about 0.1% of Lombard Odier Asset Management Europe Ltd’s holdings, making the stock its 27th largest position. Lombard Odier Asset Management Europe Ltd’s holdings in Manulife Financial were worth $18,423,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MFC. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its stake in shares of Manulife Financial by 33.9% during the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 9,393 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $288,000 after purchasing an additional 2,376 shares during the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of Manulife Financial by 179.7% in the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 28,362 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $872,000 after buying an additional 18,222 shares during the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC raised its position in shares of Manulife Financial by 18.7% in the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 56,418 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,757,000 after buying an additional 8,900 shares during the last quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC lifted its stake in shares of Manulife Financial by 13.1% during the second quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 7,843 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $251,000 after buying an additional 909 shares during the period. Finally, MUFG Securities EMEA plc lifted its stake in shares of Manulife Financial by 814.3% during the second quarter. MUFG Securities EMEA plc now owns 6,399,999 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $204,544,000 after buying an additional 5,699,999 shares during the period. 52.56% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Manulife Financial Stock Performance

MFC opened at $44.44 on Monday. Manulife Financial Corp has a 1 year low of $29.70 and a 1 year high of $44.89. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $40.91 and its 200 day simple moving average is $38.21. The stock has a market capitalization of $73.85 billion, a PE ratio of 17.63 and a beta of 0.84.

Manulife Financial (NYSE:MFC) (TSE:MFC) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 13th. The financial services provider reported $0.77 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.79 by ($0.02). The company had revenue of $8.89 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.32 billion. Manulife Financial had a return on equity of 16.58% and a net margin of 10.19%.During the same period last year, the company posted $0.99 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Manulife Financial Corp will post 3.03 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Manulife Financial Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 19th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 29th were paid a dividend of $0.485 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 29th. This represents a $1.94 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.4%. Manulife Financial’s payout ratio is currently 56.75%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Manulife Financial from a “buy (a-)” rating to a “buy (b+)” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 21st. Scotiabank restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Manulife Financial in a report on Wednesday, July 15th. Zacks Research cut Manulife Financial from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 15th. Finally, TD Securities reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Manulife Financial in a research note on Thursday, May 14th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have assigned a Buy rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $51.50.

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.