Quadrature Capital Ltd Acquires 4,197,592 Shares of Manulife Financial Corp $MFC

by · The Markets Daily

Quadrature Capital Ltd increased its holdings in Manulife Financial Corp (NYSE:MFC – Free Report) (TSE:MFC) by 13,155.3% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 4,229,500 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 4,197,592 shares during the period. Manulife Financial makes up 1.6% of Quadrature Capital Ltd’s portfolio, making the stock its 13th biggest position. Quadrature Capital Ltd owned about 0.25% of Manulife Financial worth $131,743,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MFC. Brighton Jones LLC grew its stake in shares of Manulife Financial by 33.9% in the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 9,393 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $288,000 after purchasing an additional 2,376 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Manulife Financial by 179.7% in the 1st quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 28,362 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $872,000 after buying an additional 18,222 shares in the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC lifted its position in shares of Manulife Financial by 18.7% during the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 56,418 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,757,000 after buying an additional 8,900 shares during the period. Sivia Capital Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of Manulife Financial by 13.1% during the 2nd quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 7,843 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $251,000 after buying an additional 909 shares during the period. Finally, MUFG Securities EMEA plc boosted its stake in Manulife Financial by 814.3% in the 2nd quarter. MUFG Securities EMEA plc now owns 6,399,999 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $204,544,000 after buying an additional 5,699,999 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 52.56% of the company’s stock.

Manulife Financial Price Performance

NYSE MFC opened at $33.49 on Friday. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $36.52 and its 200 day simple moving average is $34.33. Manulife Financial Corp has a one year low of $25.92 and a one year high of $38.72. The firm has a market cap of $56.15 billion, a PE ratio of 15.08 and a beta of 0.83.

Manulife Financial (NYSE:MFC – Get Free Report) (TSE:MFC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 11th. The financial services provider reported $0.80 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.76 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $11.32 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.32 billion. Manulife Financial had a return on equity of 16.43% and a net margin of 9.18%.During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.03 EPS. As a group, equities analysts expect that Manulife Financial Corp will post 2.87 earnings per share for the current year.

Manulife Financial Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 19th. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 25th will be issued a $0.485 dividend. This is a positive change from Manulife Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.44. This represents a $1.94 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, February 25th. Manulife Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 63.96%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have weighed in on the company. Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce upgraded Manulife Financial from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 8th. Scotiabank reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Manulife Financial in a report on Thursday, February 5th. Royal Bank Of Canada restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Manulife Financial in a research note on Friday, February 13th. BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Manulife Financial in a report on Friday, November 14th. Finally, Morgan Stanley set a $51.00 target price on shares of Manulife Financial in a research report on Monday, December 15th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and five have given a Buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $51.50.

View Our Latest Analysis on Manulife Financial

About Manulife Financial

(Free Report)

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.

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