Manulife Financial Co. (NYSE:MFC) Shares Purchased by Grimes & Company Inc.

Grimes & Company Inc. boosted its holdings in Manulife Financial Co. (NYSE:MFC) (TSE:MFC) by 2.7% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 31,275 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 808 shares during the quarter. Grimes & Company Inc.’s holdings in Manulife Financial were worth $960,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its stake in Manulife Financial by 16.4% in the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 1,988,200 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $61,426,000 after purchasing an additional 279,418 shares during the last quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC increased its stake in Manulife Financial by 148.9% in the third quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC now owns 73,346 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,382,000 after purchasing an additional 43,877 shares during the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc grew its position in Manulife Financial by 0.5% during the second quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 14,783,400 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $393,592,000 after acquiring an additional 75,244 shares during the period. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky purchased a new stake in Manulife Financial during the third quarter valued at about $13,318,000. Finally, DRW Securities LLC purchased a new stake in Manulife Financial during the third quarter valued at about $1,008,000. 52.56% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Manulife Financial Trading Down 0.5 %

MFC stock opened at $30.53 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $31.12 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $29.22. Manulife Financial Co. has a 12-month low of $21.54 and a 12-month high of $33.07. The company has a market cap of $52.77 billion, a PE ratio of 14.75, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.05 and a beta of 1.09.

Manulife Financial (NYSE:MFC) (TSE:MFC) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 6th. The financial services provider reported $1.00 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.70 by $0.30. Manulife Financial had a return on equity of 16.11% and a net margin of 9.79%. The firm had revenue of $10.69 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.73 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.69 earnings per share. Equities analysts forecast that Manulife Financial Co. will post 2.69 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Manulife Financial Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, December 19th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, November 20th were given a dividend of $0.296 per share. This represents a $1.18 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.88%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, November 20th. This is an increase from Manulife Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.29. Manulife Financial’s payout ratio is 59.42%.

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.