Bridge Creek Capital Management LLC Decreases Stake in Manulife Financial Co. (NYSE:MFC)

Bridge Creek Capital Management LLC lessened its holdings in shares of Manulife Financial Co. (NYSE:MFC) (TSE:MFC) by 2.9% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 91,755 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 2,725 shares during the period. Bridge Creek Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Manulife Financial were worth $2,818,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Franklin Resources Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Manulife Financial by 16.4% in the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 1,988,200 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $61,426,000 after purchasing an additional 279,418 shares during the period. Sanctuary Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Manulife Financial by 148.9% during the 3rd quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC now owns 73,346 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,382,000 after purchasing an additional 43,877 shares during the period. BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp increased its position in shares of Manulife Financial by 1,210.7% during the 2nd quarter. BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp now owns 1,161,059 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $30,922,000 after purchasing an additional 1,072,474 shares during the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc lifted its position in Manulife Financial by 0.5% in the second quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 14,783,400 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $393,592,000 after buying an additional 75,244 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky acquired a new stake in shares of Manulife Financial during the third quarter valued at about $13,318,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 52.56% of the company’s stock.

Manulife Financial Price Performance

Shares of MFC stock traded down $0.23 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $29.56. The company had a trading volume of 606,661 shares, compared to its average volume of 968,119. Manulife Financial Co. has a fifty-two week low of $20.78 and a fifty-two week high of $33.07. The company’s fifty day moving average is $31.39 and its 200 day moving average is $28.99. The stock has a market capitalization of $51.10 billion, a PE ratio of 14.28, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.14 and a beta of 1.09.

Manulife Financial (NYSE:MFC) (TSE:MFC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 6th. The financial services provider reported $1.00 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.70 by $0.30. Manulife Financial had a return on equity of 16.11% and a net margin of 9.79%. The business had revenue of $10.69 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.73 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.69 earnings per share. Equities analysts forecast that Manulife Financial Co. will post 2.72 earnings per share for the current year.

Manulife Financial Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, December 19th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, November 20th were paid a $0.296 dividend. This is an increase from Manulife Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.29. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, November 20th. This represents a $1.18 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.01%. Manulife Financial’s payout ratio is 59.42%.

Manulife Financial 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.