Cormark Predicts Lower Earnings for Manulife Financial

Manulife Financial Co. (NYSE:MFC) (TSE:MFC) – Investment analysts at Cormark cut their FY2024 earnings per share estimates for Manulife Financial in a research note issued on Tuesday, February 4th. Cormark analyst L. Persaud now expects that the financial services provider will earn $2.61 per share for the year, down from their prior estimate of $2.73. The consensus estimate for Manulife Financial’s current full-year earnings is $2.67 per share. Cormark also issued estimates for Manulife Financial’s Q4 2024 earnings at $0.65 EPS.

Manulife Financial Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:MFC opened at $30.14 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $52.11 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.56, a PEG ratio of 1.04 and a beta of 1.09. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $30.73 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $29.43. Manulife Financial has a 52-week low of $21.95 and a 52-week high of $33.07.

Manulife Financial (NYSE:MFC) (TSE:MFC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 6th. The financial services provider reported $1.00 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.70 by $0.30. Manulife Financial had a return on equity of 16.11% and a net margin of 9.79%. The company had revenue of $10.69 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.73 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.69 EPS.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. National Bank of Canada FI lifted its position in shares of Manulife Financial by 13.5% during the 3rd quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 28,063,936 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $829,374,000 after buying an additional 3,329,892 shares in the last quarter. Bridgewater Associates LP lifted its position in shares of Manulife Financial by 169.6% during the 3rd quarter. Bridgewater Associates LP now owns 1,404,481 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $41,554,000 after buying an additional 883,624 shares in the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. lifted its position in shares of Manulife Financial by 1,067.3% during the 4th quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 686,418 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $21,080,000 after buying an additional 627,614 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Manulife Financial by 8.1% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 8,273,260 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $247,473,000 after buying an additional 616,517 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund purchased a new position in shares of Manulife Financial during the 3rd quarter valued at about $17,412,000. 52.56% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.