Manulife Financial Co. (TSE:MFC) Given Consensus Rating of “Buy” by Analysts

Shares of Manulife Financial Co. (TSE:MFC) (NYSE:MFC) have received a consensus rating of “Buy” from the nine brokerages that are covering the stock, Marketbeat.com reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month price objective among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is C$57.00.

A number of analysts have weighed in on MFC shares. National Bank Financial raised their price objective on shares of Manulife Financial from C$56.00 to C$59.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 14th. Desjardins set a C$58.00 price objective on shares of Manulife Financial and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, April 17th. Finally, TD reduced their price objective on shares of Manulife Financial from C$59.00 to C$58.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, May 14th.

Manulife Financial Price Performance

Shares of TSE MFC opened at C$57.19 on Wednesday. Manulife Financial has a 1 year low of C$41.08 and a 1 year high of C$58.06. The stock has a market cap of C$95.26 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.48, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.01 and a beta of 0.73. The firm has a 50-day moving average of C$54.13 and a 200 day moving average of C$51.17.

Manulife Financial (TSE:MFC) (NYSE:MFC) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 13th. The financial services provider reported C$1.06 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 company had revenue of C$2.15 billion during the quarter. Research analysts expect that Manulife Financial will post 3.6104452 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Manulife Financial

In other news, insider Rahul Madhav Joshi sold 25,000 shares of Manulife Financial stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of C$54.29, for a total value of C$1,357,250.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 77,185 shares in the company, valued at C$4,190,373.65. The trade was a 24.47% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Also, Director Anthony Alex Silva sold 1,100 shares of Manulife Financial stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of C$53.17, for a total transaction of C$58,487.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 7,075 shares of the company’s stock, valued at C$376,177.75. This represents a 13.46% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 136,834 shares of company stock valued at $7,311,659. Insiders own 0.03% of the company’s stock.

Manulife Financial Company Profile

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.