Baird Financial Group Inc. Increases Stock Position in Manulife Financial Co. (NYSE:MFC)

Baird Financial Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Manulife Financial Co. (NYSE:MFC) (TSE:MFC) by 17.4% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 69,980 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 10,370 shares during the period. Baird Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in Manulife Financial were worth $2,149,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Little House Capital LLC lifted its position in shares of Manulife Financial by 1.0% in the 4th quarter. Little House Capital LLC now owns 33,767 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,037,000 after purchasing an additional 331 shares during the period. Robertson Stephens Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Manulife Financial by 1.5% in the 4th quarter. Robertson Stephens Wealth Management LLC now owns 23,068 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $708,000 after purchasing an additional 339 shares during the period. Erste Asset Management GmbH lifted its position in shares of Manulife Financial by 0.6% in the 4th quarter. Erste Asset Management GmbH now owns 69,300 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,133,000 after purchasing an additional 400 shares during the period. TIAA Trust National Association lifted its position in shares of Manulife Financial by 5.0% in the 4th quarter. TIAA Trust National Association now owns 8,419 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $259,000 after purchasing an additional 404 shares during the period. Finally, Addison Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Manulife Financial by 45.9% in the 4th quarter. Addison Advisors LLC now owns 1,428 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $44,000 after purchasing an additional 449 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 52.56% of the company’s stock.

Manulife Financial Stock Down 0.8%

NYSE:MFC opened at $30.90 on Monday. Manulife Financial Co. has a 52 week low of $23.30 and a 52 week high of $33.07. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $29.82 and a 200 day moving average of $30.47. The stock has a market capitalization of $52.92 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.93, a PEG ratio of 1.11 and a beta of 1.00.

Manulife Financial (NYSE:MFC) (TSE:MFC) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, May 7th. The financial services provider reported $0.69 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.70 by ($0.01). Manulife Financial had a net margin of 10.08% and a return on equity of 15.98%. The firm had revenue of $1.49 billion for the quarter. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.94 earnings per share. As a group, analysts expect that Manulife Financial Co. will post 2.87 EPS for the current year.

Manulife Financial Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 19th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, May 21st will be paid a dividend of $0.3194 per share. This is a positive change from Manulife Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.31. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, May 21st. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.13%. Manulife Financial’s dividend payout ratio is presently 63.35%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on MFC shares. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on shares of Manulife Financial from $49.00 to $51.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, February 21st. Scotiabank reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Manulife Financial in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, three have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $45.50.

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.