Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund Purchases 7,577,711 Shares of Manulife Financial Corp $MFC

Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund increased its position in shares of Manulife Financial Corp (NYSE:MFC) (TSE:MFC) by 183.7% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 11,702,230 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 7,577,711 shares during the quarter. Manulife Financial comprises about 0.6% of Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 29th largest position. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund owned approximately 0.70% of Manulife Financial worth $402,969,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Basepoint Wealth LLC bought a new stake in Manulife Financial during the 4th quarter worth about $25,000. Hantz Financial Services Inc. bought a new position in shares of Manulife Financial in the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. Sfam LLC bought a new position in shares of Manulife Financial in the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. Farmers & Merchants Trust Co of Chambersburg PA acquired a new stake in shares of Manulife Financial during the 1st quarter worth approximately $29,000. Finally, Heritage Wealth Advisors acquired a new stake in shares of Manulife Financial during the 4th quarter worth approximately $30,000. Institutional investors own 52.56% of the company’s stock.

Manulife Financial Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE MFC opened at $43.64 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $72.53 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.32 and a beta of 0.84. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $40.33 and a 200 day moving average price of $37.95. Manulife Financial Corp has a 52-week low of $29.70 and a 52-week high of $43.81.

Manulife Financial (NYSE:MFC) (TSE:MFC) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, May 13th. The financial services provider reported $0.77 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.79 by ($0.02). Manulife Financial had a return on equity of 16.58% and a net margin of 10.19%.The firm had revenue of $8.89 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.32 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.99 earnings per share. Analysts predict that Manulife Financial Corp will post 3.03 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Manulife Financial Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 19th. Investors of record on Friday, May 29th were paid a dividend of $0.485 per share. This represents a $1.94 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 29th. Manulife Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 56.75%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages recently weighed in on MFC. TD Securities restated a “buy” rating on shares of Manulife Financial in a report on Thursday, May 14th. Scotiabank reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Manulife Financial in a report on Wednesday, July 15th. Weiss Ratings cut shares of Manulife Financial from a “buy (a-)” rating to a “buy (b+)” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, Zacks Research cut shares of Manulife Financial from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 15th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have issued a Buy rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $51.50.

Manulife Financial 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.