Manulife Financial (TSE:MFC) Raised to Strong-Buy at UBS Group

Key Points

• Manulife Financial has been upgraded to a "strong-buy" rating by UBS Group, reflecting positive market sentiment.
• Several analysts have adjusted their price targets for Manulife, with TD Securities increasing it to C$54.00 and Desjardins to C$52.00.
• Despite the bullish outlook, Manulife's stock has seen a 0.4% decline, opening at C$44.34 recently.

Manulife Financial (TSE:MFC - Get Free Report) NYSE: MFC was upgraded by UBS Group to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report issued on Thursday,Zacks.com reports.

Other equities research analysts also recently issued research reports about the company. TD Securities boosted their price objective on Manulife Financial from C$50.00 to C$54.00 in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Barclays upped their price target on Manulife Financial from C$47.00 to C$48.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. National Bankshares decreased their price target on Manulife Financial from C$48.00 to C$47.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, August 7th. Royal Bank Of Canada decreased their price target on Manulife Financial from C$51.00 to C$49.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Friday, August 8th. Finally, Desjardins upped their price target on Manulife Financial from C$48.00 to C$52.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have assigned a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of C$48.89.

Manulife Financial Stock Down 0.4%

TSE MFC opened at C$44.34 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of C$74.92 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.30, a P/E/G ratio of 1.01 and a beta of 0.93. Manulife Financial has a 52 week low of C$36.93 and a 52 week high of C$46.42. The business has a 50 day moving average price of C$43.14 and a 200-day moving average price of C$42.67.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Manulife Financial news, insider Paul Lorentz sold 178,425 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of C$41.90, for a total value of C$7,476,007.50. Following the transaction, the insider owned 79,930 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately C$3,349,067. The trade was a 69.06% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Insiders sold a total of 179,582 shares of company stock valued at $7,516,321 over the last 90 days. 0.03% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

About Manulife Financial

Manulife provides life insurance and wealth management products and services to individuals and group customers in Canada, the United States, and Asia. Manulife is one of Canada's Big Three Life Insurance companies (the other two are Sun Life and Great West Life). As of Dec. 31, 2021, Manulife reported assets under management or administration of about CAD $1.4 trillion.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.