Manulife Financial Co. (TSE:MFC) Receives Average Rating of “Moderate Buy” from Brokerages

Shares of Manulife Financial Co. (TSE:MFC) (NYSE:MFC) have received a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the thirteen research firms that are presently covering the stock, Marketbeat.com reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, three have given a hold recommendation, eight have given a buy recommendation and one has assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average twelve-month price objective among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is C$43.45.

MFC has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their target price on shares of Manulife Financial from C$42.00 to C$47.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Barclays boosted their price objective on Manulife Financial from C$39.00 to C$40.00 in a research report on Friday, November 22nd. TD Securities raised their target price on Manulife Financial from C$45.00 to C$48.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, November 7th. Cormark lifted their price target on Manulife Financial from C$47.00 to C$48.00 in a research report on Thursday, November 21st. Finally, Scotiabank increased their price objective on Manulife Financial from C$48.00 to C$49.00 in a research report on Friday, November 8th.

Manulife Financial Trading Up 0.0 %

Manulife Financial stock opened at C$44.05 on Friday. Manulife Financial has a one year low of C$28.06 and a one year high of C$46.42. The company’s fifty day moving average price is C$43.78 and its two-hundred day moving average price is C$39.29. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 49.60, a current ratio of 36.68 and a quick ratio of 2.58. The company has a market capitalization of C$77.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.74, a PEG ratio of 1.01 and a beta of 1.06.

Manulife Financial Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, December 19th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, November 20th were issued a dividend of $0.40 per share. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.63%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, November 20th. Manulife Financial’s dividend payout ratio is 68.09%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Manulife Financial

In other Manulife Financial news, Director Kenneth Michael Ross sold 4,243 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of C$45.80, for a total value of C$194,315.82. Also, Director Brooks Tingle sold 3,866 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, November 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of C$46.07, for a total value of C$178,102.75. Insiders have sold a total of 77,771 shares of company stock valued at $3,508,584 in the last three months. 0.03% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

About Manulife Financial

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.