Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC Increases Stake in Manulife Financial Co. (NYSE:MFC)

Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC raised its position in Manulife Financial Co. (NYSE:MFC) (TSE:MFC) by 6.6% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 59,557 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 3,688 shares during the period. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC’s holdings in Manulife Financial were worth $1,829,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Franklin Resources Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Manulife Financial by 16.4% during the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 1,988,200 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $61,426,000 after acquiring an additional 279,418 shares during the period. Sanctuary Advisors LLC raised 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 acquiring an additional 43,877 shares during the period. Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC purchased a new position in shares of Manulife Financial during the 4th quarter worth $330,000. AEGON ASSET MANAGEMENT UK Plc raised its holdings in shares of Manulife Financial by 14.9% during the 4th quarter. AEGON ASSET MANAGEMENT UK Plc now owns 88,631 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,719,000 after acquiring an additional 11,509 shares during the period. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its holdings in shares of Manulife Financial by 4.7% during the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 1,809,774 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $55,578,000 after acquiring an additional 81,799 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 52.56% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MFC has been the topic of several analyst reports. Scotiabank reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Manulife Financial in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price objective on shares of Manulife Financial from $49.00 to $51.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, February 21st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, four have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $45.50.

Manulife Financial Trading Up 3.7 %

Shares of MFC opened at $29.45 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $50.73 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.23, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.11 and a beta of 1.05. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $30.07 and its 200 day moving average price is $30.17. Manulife Financial Co. has a 12-month low of $22.61 and a 12-month high of $33.07.

Manulife Financial (NYSE:MFC) (TSE:MFC) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 19th. The financial services provider reported $0.74 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.67 by $0.07. The company had revenue of $9.31 billion during the quarter. Manulife Financial had a return on equity of 15.98% and a net margin of 10.08%. Equities research analysts forecast that Manulife Financial Co. will post 2.87 earnings per share for the current year.

Manulife Financial Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 19th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, March 5th will be given a $0.3094 dividend. This is an increase from Manulife Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.30. This represents a $1.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.20%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, March 5th. Manulife Financial’s payout ratio is currently 58.45%.

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.