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

Manulife Financial Co. (NYSE:MFC) (TSE:MFC) has earned a consensus recommendation of “Buy” from the six ratings firms that are currently covering the company, MarketBeat Ratings reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold recommendation, four have issued a buy recommendation and one has issued a strong buy recommendation on the company. The average 12-month price objective among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $45.50.

MFC has been the subject of several research reports. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price objective on Manulife Financial from $49.00 to $51.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, February 21st. Scotiabank reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Manulife Financial in a report on Monday, February 3rd.

Manulife Financial Trading Up 3.0 %

Shares of MFC opened at $31.34 on Tuesday. Manulife Financial has a twelve month low of $22.61 and a twelve month high of $33.07. The firm has a market capitalization of $53.99 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.14, a PEG ratio of 1.11 and a beta of 1.05. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $30.09 and its two-hundred day moving average is $30.34.

Manulife Financial (NYSE:MFC) (TSE:MFC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 19th. The financial services provider reported $0.74 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.67 by $0.07. Manulife Financial had a return on equity of 15.98% and a net margin of 10.08%. The firm had revenue of $9.31 billion during the quarter. Analysts predict that Manulife Financial will post 2.87 EPS for the current year.

Manulife Financial Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 19th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, March 5th were issued a dividend of $0.3094 per share. This is a positive change from Manulife Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.30. This represents a $1.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.95%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, March 5th. Manulife Financial’s dividend payout ratio is presently 58.45%.

Institutional Trading of Manulife Financial

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of MFC. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its position in shares of Manulife Financial by 16.4% in the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 1,988,200 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $61,426,000 after acquiring an additional 279,418 shares in the last quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Manulife Financial by 148.9% during the third quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC now owns 73,346 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,382,000 after purchasing an additional 43,877 shares in the last quarter. Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Manulife Financial in the fourth quarter worth about $330,000. AEGON ASSET MANAGEMENT UK Plc grew its stake in shares of Manulife Financial by 14.9% in the fourth quarter. AEGON ASSET MANAGEMENT UK Plc now owns 88,631 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,719,000 after buying an additional 11,509 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its holdings in shares of Manulife Financial by 4.7% during the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 1,809,774 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $55,578,000 after buying an additional 81,799 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 52.56% of the company’s stock.

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.