Manulife Financial Co. (NYSE:MFC) Shares Bought by Sumitomo Life Insurance Co.

Sumitomo Life Insurance Co. lifted its stake in shares of Manulife Financial Co. (NYSE:MFC) (TSE:MFC) by 3.1% in the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 30,773 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 931 shares during the quarter. Sumitomo Life Insurance Co.’s holdings in Manulife Financial were worth $909,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of MFC. Yousif Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Manulife Financial by 1.5% during the first quarter. Yousif Capital Management LLC now owns 30,377 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $759,000 after acquiring an additional 460 shares during the period. Indiana Trust & Investment Management CO raised its stake in shares of Manulife Financial by 22.2% during the 2nd quarter. Indiana Trust & Investment Management CO now owns 2,540 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $68,000 after buying an additional 462 shares in the last quarter. Addison Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Manulife Financial by 77.2% in the 2nd quarter. Addison Advisors LLC now owns 1,072 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 467 shares during the period. First Affirmative Financial Network boosted its stake in shares of Manulife Financial by 4.5% in the first quarter. First Affirmative Financial Network now owns 11,086 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $277,000 after buying an additional 482 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC grew its holdings in Manulife Financial by 73.6% during the first quarter. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC now owns 1,156 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 490 shares during the period. 52.56% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Manulife Financial Stock Up 1.1 %

Shares of MFC opened at $30.67 on Thursday. The company’s fifty day moving average is $28.03 and its two-hundred day moving average is $26.31. Manulife Financial Co. has a fifty-two week low of $17.07 and a fifty-two week high of $30.67. The firm has a market cap of $54.88 billion, a PE ratio of 17.83, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.09 and a beta of 1.08.

Manulife Financial (NYSE:MFC) (TSE:MFC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 7th. The financial services provider reported $0.91 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.64 by $0.27. The business had revenue of $9.41 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.95 billion. Manulife Financial had a return on equity of 16.16% and a net margin of 9.18%. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.62 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Manulife Financial Co. will post 2.73 earnings per share for the current year.

Manulife Financial Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 19th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, August 21st were paid a dividend of $0.29 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, August 21st. This represents a $1.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.78%. Manulife Financial’s dividend payout ratio is currently 66.86%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have commented on MFC. TD Securities boosted their target price on shares of Manulife Financial from $38.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, June 28th. Dbs Bank raised shares of Manulife Financial to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 8th. Finally, Barclays assumed coverage on Manulife Financial in a research report on Thursday, September 5th. They issued an “equal weight” rating for the company. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Manulife Financial presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $35.67.

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.