Summit Global Investments Invests $2.07 Million in Manulife Financial Corp $MFC

Summit Global Investments bought a new position in shares of Manulife Financial Corp (NYSE:MFC) (TSE:MFC) in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm bought 66,280 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $2,065,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Root Financial Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Manulife Financial in the third quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Caldwell Trust Co bought a new stake in Manulife Financial during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $27,000. Eastern Bank increased its holdings in Manulife Financial by 156.1% during the 2nd quarter. Eastern Bank now owns 968 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 590 shares in the last quarter. Winnow Wealth LLC bought a new position in Manulife Financial in the 2nd quarter valued at $38,000. Finally, Goodman Advisory Group LLC acquired a new position in Manulife Financial in the second quarter worth $39,000. 52.56% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Manulife Financial Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:MFC opened at $38.56 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $64.66 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.14 and a beta of 0.83. The company has a 50 day moving average of $36.29 and a 200-day moving average of $33.20. Manulife Financial Corp has a one year low of $25.92 and a one year high of $38.63.

Manulife Financial (NYSE:MFC) (TSE:MFC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 12th. The financial services provider reported $0.84 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.74 by $0.10. Manulife Financial had a net margin of 9.81% and a return on equity of 16.11%. The firm had revenue of $12.90 billion for the quarter. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.00 earnings per share. Equities research analysts anticipate that Manulife Financial Corp will post 2.87 earnings per share for the current year.

Manulife Financial Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 19th. Investors of record on Wednesday, November 26th were paid a dividend of $0.44 per share. This represents a $1.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.6%. This is a boost from Manulife Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.32. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, November 26th. Manulife Financial’s payout ratio is presently 55.56%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MFC has been the subject of a number of research reports. Cibc Captl Mkts upgraded Manulife Financial from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 8th. BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Manulife Financial in a research note on Friday, November 14th. Morgan Stanley set a $51.00 target price on shares of Manulife Financial in a research report on Monday, December 15th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b+)” rating on shares of Manulife Financial in a report on Monday, December 29th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their price objective on shares of Manulife Financial from $49.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, November 14th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and six have given a Buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $51.50.

Manulife Financial Company 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.