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

Shares of Manulife Financial Co. (NYSE:MFC) (TSE:MFC) have been given an average recommendation of “Buy” by the six ratings firms that are presently covering the firm, MarketBeat reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold recommendation, four have assigned a buy recommendation and one has issued a strong buy recommendation on the company. The average 1-year price objective among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $45.50.

A number of brokerages have weighed in on MFC. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price objective on Manulife Financial from $49.00 to $51.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, February 21st. Scotiabank reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Manulife Financial in a research report on Monday, February 3rd.

Manulife Financial Price Performance

NYSE MFC opened at $28.04 on Friday. The company has a fifty day moving average of $29.85 and a two-hundred day moving average of $30.46. The company has a market capitalization of $48.30 billion, a PE ratio of 13.54, a P/E/G ratio of 1.11 and a beta of 0.89. Manulife Financial has a 1 year low of $22.61 and a 1 year high of $33.07.

Manulife Financial (NYSE:MFC) (TSE:MFC) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 19th. The financial services provider reported $0.74 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.67 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $9.31 billion during the quarter. Manulife Financial had a return on equity of 15.98% and a net margin of 10.08%. On average, research analysts expect that Manulife Financial will post 2.87 earnings per share for the current year.

Manulife Financial Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 19th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, March 5th were given a dividend of $0.3094 per share. This represents a $1.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.41%. This is a boost from Manulife Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.30. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 5th. Manulife Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 58.45%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Manulife Financial

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of MFC. Stifel Financial Corp boosted its holdings in shares of Manulife Financial by 0.6% in the third quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 148,683 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $4,394,000 after acquiring an additional 859 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its position in Manulife Financial by 131.2% in the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 644,602 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $19,072,000 after purchasing an additional 365,761 shares during the period. Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC boosted its holdings in Manulife Financial by 26.3% in the 3rd quarter. Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC now owns 45,975 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,359,000 after purchasing an additional 9,582 shares in the last quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio acquired a new position in Manulife Financial during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $7,007,000. Finally, Barclays PLC increased its position in Manulife Financial by 60.1% during the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 741,764 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $21,919,000 after purchasing an additional 278,307 shares during the period. 52.56% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.