Cormark Decreases Earnings Estimates for Manulife Financial

Manulife Financial Co. (TSE:MFC - Free Report) NYSE: MFC - Research analysts at Cormark decreased their FY2026 earnings per share (EPS) estimates for shares of Manulife Financial in a note issued to investors on Thursday, August 7th. Cormark analyst L. Persaud now anticipates that the financial services provider will post earnings of $4.37 per share for the year, down from their prior forecast of $4.55. The consensus estimate for Manulife Financial's current full-year earnings is $3.61 per share.

Other research analysts also recently issued reports about the company. Royal Bank Of Canada cut their price objective on Manulife Financial from C$51.00 to C$49.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Friday. National Bankshares cut their price objective on Manulife Financial from C$48.00 to C$47.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, August 7th. Barclays boosted their price objective on Manulife Financial from C$46.00 to C$47.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 7th. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their price target on Manulife Financial from C$51.00 to C$46.00 in a report on Monday, April 21st. Finally, Scotiabank lowered their price target on Manulife Financial from C$53.00 to C$50.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of C$47.75.

Manulife Financial Price Performance

Shares of TSE:MFC traded up C$0.36 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching C$41.55. 2,398,649 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 7,567,188. The company's 50 day moving average price is C$42.60 and its 200-day moving average price is C$42.67. The firm has a market cap of C$72.88 billion, a PE ratio of 12.93, a PEG ratio of 1.01 and a beta of 1.06. Manulife Financial has a 52 week low of C$34.46 and a 52 week high of C$46.42.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Philip James Witherington sold 10,866 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of C$44.22, for a total transaction of C$480,488.00. Also, Senior Officer Trevor Kreel sold 3,636 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of C$44.22, for a total value of C$160,781.74. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 46,955 shares of company stock worth $2,075,684. Company insiders own 0.03% of the company's stock.

Manulife Financial Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 19th. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 19th will be given a dividend of $0.44 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, August 20th. This represents a $1.76 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.2%. Manulife Financial's payout ratio is currently 49.79%.

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.