TD Issues Positive Forecast for Manulife Financial (TSE:MFC) Stock Price

Key Points

• TD raised its price target for Manulife Financial from C$65 to C$67 and reaffirmed a “buy” rating, implying 6.67% upside from the reported trading price.
• Analyst sentiment is broadly positive: Manulife has a consensus “Buy” rating and an average target price of C$63, with several firms recently increasing their targets.
• Manulife reported quarterly EPS of C$1.09 on C$20.34 billion in revenue, while its shares traded near a 52-week high at C$62.81; insiders sold approximately C$7.3 million of stock over the past three months.

Manulife Financial (TSE:MFC - Get Free Report) NYSE: MFC had its price objective lifted by equities researchers at TD from C$65.00 to C$67.00 in a note issued to investors on Thursday,BayStreet.CA reports. The firm currently has a "buy" rating on the financial services provider's stock. TD's price objective points to a potential upside of 6.67% from the company's current price.

A number of other equities analysts also recently commented on the company. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price objective on Manulife Financial from C$61.00 to C$70.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 21st. 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. Scotiabank raised their price objective on shares of Manulife Financial from C$56.00 to C$61.00 and gave the company a "sector outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 15th. National Bank Financial boosted 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 report on Thursday, July 23rd. Finally, Desjardins set a C$58.00 price target on shares of Manulife Financial and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, April 17th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have given a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of C$63.00.

Manulife Financial Stock Performance

Shares of MFC traded up C$0.37 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting C$62.81. The stock had a trading volume of 2,135,341 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,013,620. Manulife Financial has a fifty-two week low of C$41.08 and a fifty-two week high of C$63.58. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of C$58.04 and a 200 day moving average price of C$53.13. The firm has a market capitalization of C$104.38 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.10, a PEG ratio of 1.01 and a beta of 0.71.

Manulife Financial (TSE:MFC - Get Free Report) NYSE: MFC last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The financial services provider reported C$1.09 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. Manulife Financial had a net margin of 11.97% and a return on equity of 12.60%. The firm had revenue of C$20.34 billion for the quarter. As a group, analysts predict that Manulife Financial will post 3.6104452 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Eileen Cloherty sold 6,500 shares of Manulife Financial stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of C$53.45, for a total transaction of C$347,425.00. Following the sale, the director owned 3,412 shares in the company, valued at C$182,371.40. This trade represents a 65.58% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Also, insider Rahul Madhav Joshi sold 25,000 shares of Manulife Financial stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of C$54.29, for a total value of C$1,357,250.00. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 77,185 shares in the company, valued at approximately C$4,190,373.65. The trade was a 24.47% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Insiders sold 136,834 shares of company stock worth $7,311,659 over the last three months. Insiders own 0.03% of the company's stock.

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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