Manulife Financial Co. (TSE:MFC) Given Average Recommendation of “Buy” by Brokerages

Shares of Manulife Financial Co. (TSE:MFC) (NYSE:MFC) have received a consensus recommendation of “Buy” from the nine research firms that are presently covering the firm, MarketBeat reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month price target among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is C$53.13.

MFC has been the subject of a number of research reports. Cibc Captl Mkts upgraded Manulife Financial from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 8th. UBS Group raised Manulife Financial to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, October 16th. Royal Bank Of Canada set a C$52.00 price objective on Manulife Financial and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, January 19th. Desjardins set a C$55.00 price objective on Manulife Financial and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 18th. Finally, National Bankshares increased their target price on Manulife Financial from C$47.00 to C$52.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, October 20th.

Manulife Financial Price Performance

MFC stock opened at C$50.65 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of C$84.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.23, a PEG ratio of 1.01 and a beta of 1.01. Manulife Financial has a 1-year low of C$36.93 and a 1-year high of C$52.42. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of C$49.86 and a two-hundred day moving average price of C$45.77.

Manulife Financial (TSE:MFC) (NYSE:MFC) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 12th. The financial services provider reported C$1.16 EPS for the quarter. The business had revenue of C$26.23 billion during the quarter. Manulife Financial had a net margin of 12.52% and a return on equity of 11.75%. As a group, analysts expect that Manulife Financial will post 3.6104452 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Manulife Financial

In other Manulife Financial news, insider Shamus Edward Weiland sold 88,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of C$48.95, for a total value of C$4,332,075.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 53,495 shares in the company, valued at approximately C$2,618,580.25. This represents a 62.33% decrease in their position. Also, insider Rahim Hirji sold 25,048 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of C$48.25, for a total transaction of C$1,208,566.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 31,315 shares in the company, valued at C$1,510,948.75. The trade was a 44.44% decrease in their position. 0.03% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Manulife Financial Company Profile

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.