Manulife Financial Co. (TSE:MFC) Receives Consensus Rating of "Buy" from Analysts

Key Points

• Analysts have a consensus “Buy” rating on Manulife Financial, with 10 buy ratings, one strong-buy rating and one hold rating among 12 firms. The average 12-month price target is C$66.00.
• Several major brokerages recently raised their targets, with Scotia, RBC, National Bank Financial, Jefferies and BMO setting objectives between C$67 and C$70.
• Manulife reported quarterly EPS of C$1.09 on C$20.34 billion in revenue, while its shares opened at C$61.06 and were trading near their 52-week high of C$63.58.

Manulife Financial Co. (TSE:MFC - Get Free Report) NYSE: MFC has been assigned a consensus recommendation of "Buy" from the twelve research firms that are covering the firm, Marketbeat reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. The average 1-year price objective among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is C$66.00.

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on MFC shares. Scotia boosted their target price on Manulife Financial from C$61.00 to C$67.00 and gave the stock a "sector outperform" rating in a report on Friday, August 7th. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their price target on Manulife Financial from C$55.00 to C$67.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, August 7th. National Bank Financial lifted their price objective on shares of Manulife Financial from C$59.00 to C$69.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 23rd. Jefferies Financial Group upped their target price on Manulife Financial from C$61.00 to C$70.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 21st. Finally, BMO Capital Markets raised their price target on shares of Manulife Financial from C$67.00 to C$70.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, August 7th.

Manulife Financial Stock Up 0.0%

Shares of MFC stock opened at C$61.06 on Thursday. Manulife Financial has a 52-week low of C$41.22 and a 52-week high of C$63.58. The stock has a market cap of C$101.31 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.55, a PEG ratio of 1.01 and a beta of 0.71. The firm's 50-day moving average is C$58.92 and its 200-day moving average is C$53.49. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 26.52, a quick ratio of 2.58 and a current ratio of 2.36.

Manulife Financial (TSE:MFC - Get Free Report) NYSE: MFC last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 5th. The financial services provider reported C$1.09 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. Manulife Financial had a return on equity of 12.98% and a net margin of 11.62%.The firm had revenue of C$20.34 billion for the quarter. Sell-side analysts predict that Manulife Financial will post 3.6104452 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Manulife Financial news, Director Anthony Alex Silva bought 2,334 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 21st. The stock was purchased at an average cost of C$53.16 per share, for a total transaction of C$124,075.44. Following the completion of the purchase, the director directly owned 8,175 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately C$434,583. This trade represents a 39.96% increase in their ownership of the stock. Also, Director Eileen Cloherty sold 6,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of C$53.45, for a total value of C$347,425.00. Following the sale, the director owned 3,412 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately C$182,371.40. This represents a 65.58% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Insiders sold 136,834 shares of company stock worth $7,311,659 in the last ninety days. 0.03% of the stock is owned by company 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.

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