Manulife Financial Co. (NYSE:MFC) Receives Average Rating of “Buy” from Analysts

Manulife Financial Co. (NYSE:MFC) (TSE:MFC) has earned a consensus rating of “Buy” from the eight analysts that are covering the stock, MarketBeat Ratings reports. One investment 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. The average 12 month price objective among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $35.67.

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on the company. Dbs Bank raised Manulife Financial to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 8th. TD Securities upped their price target 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. Finally, Barclays initiated coverage on shares of Manulife Financial in a research report on Thursday, September 5th. They issued an “equal weight” rating for the company.

Manulife Financial Trading Down 0.3 %

MFC opened at $29.53 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $52.85 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.17, a P/E/G ratio of 1.06 and a beta of 1.08. Manulife Financial has a 12 month low of $17.07 and a 12 month high of $29.88. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $26.87 and its 200 day simple moving average is $25.78.

Manulife Financial (NYSE:MFC) (TSE:MFC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 7th. The financial services provider reported $0.91 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.64 by $0.27. Manulife Financial had a net margin of 9.18% and a return on equity of 16.16%. The business had revenue of $9.41 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.95 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.62 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts predict that Manulife Financial will post 2.72 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Manulife Financial Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 19th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, August 21st were issued a $0.29 dividend. This represents a $1.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.93%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, August 21st. Manulife Financial’s dividend payout ratio is 66.86%.

Institutional Trading of Manulife Financial

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Manulife Financial by 1.0% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 72,289,251 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,806,508,000 after purchasing an additional 727,764 shares in the last quarter. National Bank of Canada FI lifted its position in Manulife Financial by 14.8% during the first quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 28,803,968 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $749,435,000 after purchasing an additional 3,720,693 shares during the period. Toronto Dominion Bank grew its stake in Manulife Financial by 3.2% during the second quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank now owns 24,057,503 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $640,411,000 after buying an additional 750,422 shares in the last quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc increased its holdings in Manulife Financial by 47.4% in the 4th quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 20,710,186 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $459,108,000 after buying an additional 6,663,997 shares during the period. Finally, 1832 Asset Management L.P. increased its holdings in Manulife Financial by 34.3% in the 2nd quarter. 1832 Asset Management L.P. now owns 19,723,609 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $525,042,000 after buying an additional 5,036,716 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 52.56% of the company’s stock.

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.