Manulife Financial (TSE:MFC) Share Price Crosses Below Fifty Day Moving Average – What’s Next?

Manulife Financial Co. (TSE:MFC) (NYSE:MFC)’s share price crossed below its fifty day moving average during trading on Friday. The stock has a fifty day moving average of C$61.46 and traded as low as C$60.40. Manulife Financial shares last traded at C$61.00, with a volume of 8,202,669 shares traded.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on the company. Desjardins raised their target price on Manulife Financial from C$63.00 to C$68.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, August 7th. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price target on Manulife Financial from C$61.00 to C$70.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 21st. Scotiabank downgraded Manulife Financial from a “sector outperform” rating to a “hold” rating and set a C$67.00 price objective for the company. in a research report on Wednesday, October 28th. Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce raised their price objective on Manulife Financial from C$61.00 to C$69.00 in a research report on Wednesday, July 15th. Finally, National Bank Financial boosted their price objective on shares of Manulife Financial from C$68.00 to C$69.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of C$67.00.

Manulife Financial Price Performance

The company’s 50-day moving average price is C$61.46 and its 200-day moving average price is C$55.82. The company has a quick ratio of 2.58, a current ratio of 2.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 28.07. The firm has a market cap of C$100.77 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.53, a PEG ratio of 1.01 and a beta of 0.53.

Manulife Financial (TSE:MFC) (NYSE:MFC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 5th. The financial services provider reported C$1.09 earnings per share for the quarter. Manulife Financial had a net margin of 12.23% and a return on equity of 12.24%. The firm had revenue of C$20.34 billion during the quarter. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Manulife Financial Co. will post 3.61 EPS for the current year.

Manulife Financial Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 21st. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 21st were issued a dividend of $0.4850 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 21st. This represents a $1.94 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.2%. Manulife Financial’s dividend payout ratio is 50.14%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Manulife Financial news, insider Patrick David Graham sold 6,843 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of C$62.06, for a total value of C$424,676.58. 0.03% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

About Manulife Financial

Manulife Financial Corporation, a leading international financial services provider that helps people make their decisions easier and lives better by providing financial advice, insurance, and wealth and asset management solutions. Manulife Financial Corporation trades as MFC on the TSX, NYSE, and PSE, and under 945 on the SEHK. Manulife can be found at manulife.com. One of the largest life insurers in the United States, John Hancock supports more than ten million Americans with a broad range of financial products, including life insurance and annuities.