Manulife Financial Co. (NYSE:MFC) Increases Dividend to $0.30 Per Share

Manulife Financial Co. (NYSE:MFC) (TSE:MFC) announced a quarterly dividend on Wednesday, November 6th,Zacks Dividends reports. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, November 20th will be given a dividend of 0.296 per share by the financial services provider on Thursday, December 19th. This represents a $1.18 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.63%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, November 20th. This is a boost from Manulife Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.29.

Manulife Financial has raised its dividend payment by an average of 9.2% per year over the last three years and has raised its dividend annually for the last 11 consecutive years. Manulife Financial has a dividend payout ratio of 39.2% meaning its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Equities analysts expect Manulife Financial to earn $3.00 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $1.15 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 38.3%.

Manulife Financial Stock Performance

Shares of MFC stock opened at $32.66 on Monday. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $29.91 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $27.43. The stock has a market cap of $57.22 billion, a PE ratio of 15.78, a PEG ratio of 1.19 and a beta of 1.08. Manulife Financial has a 52-week low of $18.80 and a 52-week high of $33.07.

Manulife Financial (NYSE:MFC) (TSE:MFC) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 6th. The financial services provider reported $1.00 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.70 by $0.30. Manulife Financial had a net margin of 9.79% and a return on equity of 16.11%. The firm had revenue of $10.69 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.73 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.69 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Manulife Financial will post 2.74 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have issued reports on MFC. Dbs Bank raised shares of Manulife Financial to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 8th. Barclays initiated coverage on shares of Manulife Financial in a report on Thursday, September 5th. They set an “equal weight” rating for the company. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Manulife Financial presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $37.50.

About Manulife Financial

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.