Manulife Financial Co. (NYSE:MFC) Receives $33.33 Consensus Target Price from Brokerages

Manulife Financial Co. (NYSE:MFC) (TSE:MFC) has received a consensus recommendation of “Buy” from the five analysts that are currently covering the firm, Marketbeat reports. Five analysts have rated the stock with a buy recommendation. The average twelve-month price target among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $33.33.

MFC has been the subject of several analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on Manulife Financial in a report on Thursday, February 22nd. They issued a “buy” rating for the company. Desjardins raised Manulife Financial from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, February 15th. BMO Capital Markets raised Manulife Financial from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $31.00 to $35.00 in a report on Thursday, February 15th. Royal Bank of Canada raised Manulife Financial from a “sector perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 12th. Finally, TheStreet raised Manulife Financial from a “c+” rating to a “b” rating in a report on Thursday, December 21st.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Manulife Financial

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of MFC. BlackRock Inc. increased its holdings in Manulife Financial by 10.1% in the 1st quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 878,359 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $18,753,000 after purchasing an additional 80,450 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Trust N.A. increased its holdings in Manulife Financial by 7.9% in the 1st quarter. Raymond James Trust N.A. now owns 27,503 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $587,000 after purchasing an additional 2,013 shares in the last quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers acquired a new position in Manulife Financial in the 1st quarter worth about $428,000. Moors & Cabot Inc. increased its holdings in Manulife Financial by 2.3% in the 1st quarter. Moors & Cabot Inc. now owns 43,078 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $920,000 after purchasing an additional 956 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Manulife Financial by 32.7% in the 1st quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 14,560 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $311,000 after purchasing an additional 3,585 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 52.56% of the company’s stock.

Manulife Financial Price Performance

MFC opened at $24.67 on Friday. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $23.83 and a 200 day simple moving average of $21.20. The company has a market capitalization of $44.42 billion, a PE ratio of 12.78, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 1.08. Manulife Financial has a 1 year low of $17.07 and a 1 year high of $25.14.

Manulife Financial (NYSE:MFC) (TSE:MFC) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 14th. The financial services provider reported $0.68 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.63 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $10.96 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.57 billion. Manulife Financial had a return on equity of 15.98% and a net margin of 10.42%. Equities analysts anticipate that Manulife Financial will post 2.71 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Manulife Financial Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 19th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, February 28th were issued a dividend of $0.298 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 27th. This represents a $1.19 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.83%. This is a boost from Manulife Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.26. Manulife Financial’s payout ratio is 61.66%.

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.