Brokerages Set Manulife Financial Co. (TSE:MFC) PT at C$66.00

Manulife Financial Co. (TSE:MFC) (NYSE:MFC) has been assigned a consensus rating of “Buy” from the twelve analysts that are currently covering the stock, Marketbeat reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. The average 1 year price target among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is C$66.00.

A number of research firms recently issued reports on MFC. Barclays raised their price target on Manulife Financial from C$56.00 to C$59.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, August 6th. Scotiabank increased their price objective on Manulife Financial from C$56.00 to C$61.00 and gave the stock a “sector outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 15th. Scotia increased their price objective on Manulife Financial from C$61.00 to C$67.00 and gave the stock a “sector outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, August 7th. Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce lifted their target price on Manulife Financial from C$61.00 to C$69.00 in a research note on Wednesday, July 15th. Finally, TD boosted their target price on Manulife Financial from C$65.00 to C$67.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 6th.

Manulife Financial Trading Up 0.8%

Shares of Manulife Financial stock opened at C$61.73 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 26.52, a quick ratio of 2.58 and a current ratio of 2.36. The company has a market capitalization of C$102.43 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.73, a PEG ratio of 1.01 and a beta of 0.71. Manulife Financial has a 1 year low of C$41.22 and a 1 year high of C$63.58. The company’s fifty day moving average is C$59.23 and its two-hundred day moving average is C$53.62.

Manulife Financial (TSE:MFC) (NYSE:MFC) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The financial services provider reported C$1.09 EPS for the quarter. Manulife Financial had a net margin of 11.62% and a return on equity of 12.98%. The business had revenue of C$20.34 billion during the quarter. Analysts forecast that Manulife Financial will post 3.6104452 earnings per share for the current year.

Manulife Financial Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 21st. Investors of record on Monday, September 21st will be given a $0.485 dividend. This represents a $1.94 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.1%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 21st. Manulife Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 50.14%.

Insider Activity

In other Manulife Financial news, Director Eileen Cloherty sold 6,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of C$53.45, for a total value of C$347,425.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 3,412 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately C$182,371.40. The trade was a 65.58% decrease in their position. Also, insider Rahul Madhav Joshi sold 50,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, May 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of C$53.76, for a total transaction of C$2,688,000.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 27,186 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately C$1,461,519.36. The trade was a 64.78% decrease in their position. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 136,834 shares of company stock valued at $7,311,659. Corporate insiders own 0.03% of the company’s stock.

Manulife Financial Company Profile

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.