Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC Acquires 227,500 Shares of Manulife Financial Corp $MFC

Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Manulife Financial Corp (NYSE:MFC) (TSE:MFC) by 77.4% during the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 521,600 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 227,500 shares during the quarter. Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC’s holdings in Manulife Financial were worth $21,130,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Manulife Financial in the 4th quarter worth about $777,229,000. Bank of Nova Scotia bought a new stake in shares of Manulife Financial in the second quarter worth approximately $594,832,000. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board bought a new stake in shares of Manulife Financial in the second quarter worth approximately $495,841,000. Legal & General Group Plc purchased a new position in shares of Manulife Financial during the second quarter valued at approximately $430,039,000. Finally, Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund raised its holdings in shares of Manulife Financial by 183.7% during the first quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund now owns 11,702,230 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $402,969,000 after purchasing an additional 7,577,711 shares during the last quarter. 52.56% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MFC has been the topic of several research reports. Scotiabank restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Manulife Financial in a report on Friday, August 7th. BMO Capital Markets reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Manulife Financial in a research note on Friday, August 7th. Weiss Ratings raised Manulife Financial from a “buy (a-)” rating to a “buy (a)” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 19th. Zacks Research downgraded Manulife Financial from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 15th. Finally, TD Securities reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Manulife Financial in a report on Thursday, August 6th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have assigned a Buy rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $59.00.

Manulife Financial Trading Up 0.1%

MFC opened at $42.82 on Monday. The company has a market cap of $71.16 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.98 and a beta of 0.84. The company’s 50 day moving average is $42.72 and its 200 day moving average is $39.09. Manulife Financial Corp has a 12-month low of $30.20 and a 12-month high of $45.33.

Manulife Financial (NYSE:MFC) (TSE:MFC) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The financial services provider reported $0.79 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.78 by $0.01. Manulife Financial had a net margin of 9.99% and a return on equity of 16.68%. The company had revenue of $2.22 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.28 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.95 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 7.3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts predict that Manulife Financial Corp will post 3.03 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Manulife Financial Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 21st. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 21st will be given a dividend of $0.485 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 21st. This represents a $1.94 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.5%. Manulife Financial’s payout ratio is presently 51.49%.

About Manulife Financial

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.