Cormark Lowers Earnings Estimates for Manulife Financial

Manulife Financial Co. (TSE:MFC) (NYSE:MFC) – Equities researchers at Cormark lowered their FY2024 earnings estimates for shares of Manulife Financial in a report issued on Tuesday, February 4th. Cormark analyst L. Persaud now anticipates that the financial services provider will post earnings per share of $3.78 for the year, down from their previous estimate of $3.79. The consensus estimate for Manulife Financial’s current full-year earnings is $3.61 per share. Cormark also issued estimates for Manulife Financial’s Q4 2024 earnings at $0.94 EPS and FY2025 earnings at $4.13 EPS.

A number of other research firms also recently issued reports on MFC. TD Securities lifted their price objective on shares of Manulife Financial from C$45.00 to C$48.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, November 7th. CIBC lifted their price objective on shares of Manulife Financial from C$46.00 to C$47.00 in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Scotiabank lifted their price objective on shares of Manulife Financial from C$48.00 to C$49.00 in a report on Friday, November 8th. National Bankshares lifted their price objective on shares of Manulife Financial from C$45.00 to C$47.00 in a report on Thursday, November 7th. Finally, Barclays lifted their target price on Manulife Financial from C$40.00 to C$47.00 in a research note on Monday, January 6th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Manulife Financial has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of C$44.55.

Manulife Financial Price Performance

MFC opened at C$42.74 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 49.60, a current ratio of 36.68 and a quick ratio of 2.58. The company has a market capitalization of C$75.65 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.19, a P/E/G ratio of 1.01 and a beta of 1.06. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is C$44.09 and its two-hundred day moving average price is C$40.94. Manulife Financial has a 1 year low of C$29.61 and a 1 year high of C$46.42.

Manulife Financial (TSE:MFC) (NYSE:MFC) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 6th. The financial services provider reported C$1.00 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of C$0.95 by C$0.05. Manulife Financial had a net margin of 17.34% and a return on equity of 10.41%. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.92 earnings per share.

Insider Buying and Selling at Manulife Financial

In other news, Director Brooks Tingle sold 3,866 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, November 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of C$46.07, for a total transaction of C$178,102.75. Also, Senior Officer James D. Gallagher sold 57,064 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of C$44.80, for a total value of C$2,556,638.39. Insiders sold 77,771 shares of company stock valued at $3,508,584 in the last quarter. 0.03% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Manulife Financial Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, December 19th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, November 20th were issued a dividend of $0.40 per share. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.74%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, November 20th. Manulife Financial’s payout ratio is presently 68.09%.

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.