Cormark Boosts Earnings Estimates for Manulife Financial

Manulife Financial Co. (NYSE:MFC) (TSE:MFC) – Stock analysts at Cormark lifted their FY2024 earnings per share estimates for shares of Manulife Financial in a research report issued on Thursday, November 7th. Cormark analyst L. Persaud now forecasts that the financial services provider will post earnings per share of $2.73 for the year, up from their prior forecast of $2.69. The consensus estimate for Manulife Financial’s current full-year earnings is $2.74 per share.

A number of other research analysts also recently commented on MFC. Barclays initiated coverage on shares of Manulife Financial in a research report on Thursday, September 5th. They issued an “equal weight” rating on the stock. Dbs Bank raised shares of Manulife Financial to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 8th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $35.67.

Manulife Financial Price Performance

MFC opened at $31.80 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $55.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.36, a PEG ratio of 1.14 and a beta of 1.08. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $29.39 and a 200 day moving average price of $27.06. Manulife Financial has a 12 month low of $18.42 and a 12 month high of $32.94.

Manulife Financial (NYSE:MFC) (TSE:MFC) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, August 7th. The financial services provider reported $0.91 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.64 by $0.27. The company had revenue of $9.41 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.95 billion. Manulife Financial had a net margin of 9.79% and a return on equity of 16.26%. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.62 earnings per share.

Institutional Trading of Manulife Financial

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in MFC. Scheer Rowlett & Associates Investment Management Ltd. increased its stake in shares of Manulife Financial by 1.1% during the 3rd quarter. Scheer Rowlett & Associates Investment Management Ltd. now owns 1,382,077 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $40,841,000 after purchasing an additional 14,469 shares during the last quarter. Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board boosted its holdings in shares of Manulife Financial by 2.7% during the 3rd quarter. Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board now owns 67,928 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,007,000 after buying an additional 1,780 shares during the period. PCJ Investment Counsel Ltd. grew its stake in Manulife Financial by 9.5% in the 3rd quarter. PCJ Investment Counsel Ltd. now owns 247,211 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $7,305,000 after buying an additional 21,420 shares during the last quarter. Commerce Bank raised its holdings in Manulife Financial by 24.3% in the 3rd quarter. Commerce Bank now owns 13,696 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $405,000 after acquiring an additional 2,676 shares during the period. Finally, Avior Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in Manulife Financial by 279.6% during the 3rd quarter. Avior Wealth Management LLC now owns 8,582 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $254,000 after acquiring an additional 6,321 shares during the last quarter. 52.56% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Manulife Financial Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 19th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, November 20th will be given a $0.296 dividend. This is a boost from Manulife Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.29. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, November 20th. This represents a $1.18 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.72%. Manulife Financial’s dividend payout ratio is 56.04%.

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.