Manulife Financial Co. to Post Q4 2024 Earnings of $0.68 Per Share, National Bank Financial Forecasts (NYSE:MFC)

Manulife Financial Co. (NYSE:MFC - Free Report) TSE: MFC - National Bank Financial boosted their Q4 2024 earnings estimates for shares of Manulife Financial in a report released on Wednesday, May 8th. National Bank Financial analyst G. Dechaine now expects that the financial services provider will earn $0.68 per share for the quarter, up from their prior estimate of $0.67. National Bank Financial currently has a "Outperform" rating on the stock. The consensus estimate for Manulife Financial's current full-year earnings is $2.70 per share. National Bank Financial also issued estimates for Manulife Financial's FY2025 earnings at $2.96 EPS.

Manulife Financial (NYSE:MFC - Get Free Report) TSE: MFC last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 14th. The financial services provider reported $0.68 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.63 by $0.05. Manulife Financial had a net margin of 10.42% and a return on equity of 15.98%. The company had revenue of $10.96 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $7.57 billion.

Other equities research analysts have also recently issued research reports about the stock. BMO Capital Markets raised shares of Manulife Financial from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and upped their price objective for the company from $31.00 to $35.00 in a research note on Thursday, February 15th. Desjardins raised shares of Manulife Financial from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 15th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on shares of Manulife Financial in a research report on Thursday, February 22nd. They set a "buy" rating for the company. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Manulife Financial currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $33.33.

Manulife Financial Stock Up 1.2 %

Shares of Manulife Financial stock traded up $0.31 during trading on Friday, reaching $26.04. The company's stock had a trading volume of 8,937,988 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,267,576. Manulife Financial has a 52-week low of $17.07 and a 52-week high of $26.16. The company has a market cap of $46.76 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.50, a PEG ratio of 0.89 and a beta of 1.08. The firm's 50-day moving average is $23.99 and its two-hundred day moving average is $21.98.

Manulife Financial Cuts Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 19th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, May 22nd will be given a $0.29 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, May 21st. This represents a $1.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.45%. Manulife Financial's dividend payout ratio is 61.66%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Manulife Financial

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of MFC. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. increased its stake in shares of Manulife Financial by 109.4% in the 4th quarter. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. now owns 199,140 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $4,401,000 after acquiring an additional 104,026 shares in the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. increased its stake in shares of Manulife Financial by 5.7% in the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 10,465 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $231,000 after acquiring an additional 568 shares in the last quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings Inc. increased its stake in shares of Manulife Financial by 8.8% in the 3rd quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings Inc. now owns 5,507,589 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $100,922,000 after acquiring an additional 446,233 shares in the last quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. increased its stake in Manulife Financial by 44.0% during the 3rd quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 86,268 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,577,000 after purchasing an additional 26,369 shares in the last quarter. Finally, AustralianSuper Pty Ltd raised its holdings in Manulife Financial by 11.2% in the fourth quarter. AustralianSuper Pty Ltd now owns 5,793,161 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $128,019,000 after buying an additional 582,468 shares during the last quarter. 52.56% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Manulife Financial Company Profile

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.