Manulife Financial (NYSE:MFC) Hits New 12-Month High – Here’s Why

Manulife Financial Corp (NYSE:MFC) (TSE:MFC)’s stock price reached a new 52-week high during trading on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $35.96 and last traded at $35.7450, with a volume of 3568578 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $35.48.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MFC has been the topic of several research analyst reports. UBS Group initiated coverage on shares of Manulife Financial in a research note on Thursday, October 16th. They set a “buy” rating on the stock. Morgan Stanley set a $51.00 target price on Manulife Financial in a report on Monday. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Manulife Financial in a research report on Monday, December 1st. BMO Capital Markets reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Manulife Financial in a research report on Friday, November 14th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their price objective on Manulife Financial from $49.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, November 14th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat, Manulife Financial has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $51.50.

Manulife Financial Price Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $60.10 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.89 and a beta of 0.83. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $33.61 and its 200 day moving average price is $31.97.

Manulife Financial (NYSE:MFC) (TSE:MFC) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 12th. The financial services provider reported $0.84 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.74 by $0.10. Manulife Financial had a net margin of 9.81% and a return on equity of 16.11%. The firm had revenue of $12.90 billion during the quarter. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.00 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that Manulife Financial Corp will post 2.87 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Manulife Financial Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 19th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, November 26th will be paid a dividend of $0.44 per share. This represents a $1.76 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.9%. This is a boost from Manulife Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.32. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, November 26th. Manulife Financial’s payout ratio is currently 55.56%.

Institutional Trading of Manulife Financial

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in MFC. Stratos Wealth Partners LTD. boosted its holdings in Manulife Financial by 25.8% during the second quarter. Stratos Wealth Partners LTD. now owns 46,218 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,477,000 after purchasing an additional 9,478 shares during the last quarter. Cidel Asset Management Inc. increased its stake in Manulife Financial by 2.9% in the 2nd quarter. Cidel Asset Management Inc. now owns 496,570 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $15,845,000 after buying an additional 14,088 shares during the last quarter. XTX Topco Ltd bought a new stake in Manulife Financial during the 2nd quarter worth about $4,364,000. Value Partners Investments Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Manulife Financial by 16,609.6% during the 2nd quarter. Value Partners Investments Inc. now owns 1,519,407 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $48,490,000 after buying an additional 1,510,314 shares during the last quarter. Finally, CWM LLC grew its holdings in shares of Manulife Financial by 211.8% in the 2nd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 51,378 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,642,000 after acquiring an additional 34,902 shares in the last quarter. 52.56% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.