M&G Plc Sells 195,526 Shares of Manulife Financial Co. (NYSE:MFC)

M&G Plc trimmed its stake in Manulife Financial Co. (NYSE:MFC) (TSE:MFC) by 6.5% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,813,706 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 195,526 shares during the quarter. M&G Plc’s holdings in Manulife Financial were worth $75,905,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in Manulife Financial in the second quarter valued at approximately $44,000. Dixon Mitchell Investment Counsel Inc. lifted its position in shares of Manulife Financial by 3.0% in the second quarter. Dixon Mitchell Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 509,478 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $13,631,000 after buying an additional 14,633 shares during the last quarter. Csenge Advisory Group acquired a new stake in shares of Manulife Financial in the second quarter valued at approximately $228,000. Indiana Trust & Investment Management CO lifted its position in shares of Manulife Financial by 22.2% in the second quarter. Indiana Trust & Investment Management CO now owns 2,540 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $68,000 after buying an additional 462 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Simplicity Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Manulife Financial in the second quarter valued at approximately $215,000. 52.56% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MFC has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Dbs Bank raised Manulife Financial to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 8th. TD Securities raised their price objective on Manulife Financial from $38.00 to $40.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, June 28th. Finally, National Bank Financial raised Manulife Financial from a “sector perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 9th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $35.67.

Manulife Financial Stock Performance

NYSE:MFC traded up $0.50 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $25.46. 1,245,849 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,802,199. The stock has a market capitalization of $45.57 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.80, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.94 and a beta of 1.09. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $25.98 and its 200 day simple moving average is $24.80. Manulife Financial Co. has a fifty-two week low of $17.07 and a fifty-two week high of $27.51.

Manulife Financial (NYSE:MFC) (TSE:MFC) last announced 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 firm had revenue of $9.41 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $8.95 billion. Manulife Financial had a return on equity of 16.27% and a net margin of 9.28%. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.62 EPS. On average, analysts predict that Manulife Financial Co. will post 2.72 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Manulife Financial Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 19th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, August 21st will be issued a $0.29 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, August 21st. This represents a $1.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.56%. Manulife Financial’s dividend payout ratio is presently 66.86%.

Manulife Financial 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.