CIBC Asset Management Inc Increases Stock Position in Manulife Financial Corp $MFC

CIBC Asset Management Inc lifted its holdings in Manulife Financial Corp (NYSE:MFC) (TSE:MFC) by 14.6% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 16,885,459 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,145,099 shares during the period. Manulife Financial comprises 1.5% of CIBC Asset Management Inc’s holdings, making the stock its 17th biggest position. CIBC Asset Management Inc owned 1.01% of Manulife Financial worth $616,479,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. boosted its stake in Manulife Financial by 38.6% in the fourth quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 9,400,904 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $341,065,000 after acquiring an additional 2,618,035 shares in the last quarter. Bridges Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Manulife Financial by 2.0% in the fourth quarter. Bridges Investment Management Inc. now owns 16,037 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $582,000 after purchasing an additional 321 shares during the last quarter. One Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Manulife Financial during the fourth quarter worth $655,000. BNP Paribas purchased a new position in shares of Manulife Financial during the fourth quarter worth $492,000. Finally, BNP Paribas Financial Markets raised its position in Manulife Financial by 17.3% during the fourth quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 618,113 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $22,425,000 after acquiring an additional 91,264 shares in the last quarter. 52.56% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Manulife Financial Stock Performance

NYSE:MFC opened at $38.44 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $64.14 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.25 and a beta of 0.84. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $37.46 and a 200 day moving average price of $36.47. Manulife Financial Corp has a fifty-two week low of $29.70 and a fifty-two week high of $40.40.

Manulife Financial (NYSE:MFC) (TSE:MFC) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 13th. The financial services provider reported $0.77 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.79 by ($0.02). Manulife Financial had a return on equity of 16.58% and a net margin of 10.19%.The company had revenue of $8.89 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.32 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.99 EPS. Research analysts forecast that Manulife Financial Corp will post 3.2 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Manulife Financial Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 19th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 29th will be given a $0.485 dividend. This represents a $1.94 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 29th. Manulife Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 56.75%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Scotiabank reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Manulife Financial in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Manulife Financial in a research report on Friday, February 13th. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Manulife Financial from a “buy (b+)” rating to a “buy (a-)” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 28th. Finally, TD Securities reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Manulife Financial in a research note on Thursday, May 14th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and five have issued a Buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $51.50.

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.