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

Manulife Financial Co. (TSE:MFC) (NYSE:MFC) has been assigned an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the seven research firms that are covering the company, Marketbeat.com reports. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, four have assigned a buy recommendation and one has given a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month price objective among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is C$45.60.

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on MFC shares. Barclays raised their target price on Manulife Financial from C$40.00 to C$47.00 in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Cormark lifted their price objective on shares of Manulife Financial from C$47.00 to C$48.00 in a research report on Thursday, November 21st. TD Securities boosted their target price on shares of Manulife Financial from C$48.00 to C$49.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 20th. CIBC raised their price target on shares of Manulife Financial from C$47.00 to C$48.00 in a research note on Friday, February 21st. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price objective on Manulife Financial from C$50.00 to C$51.00 in a research report on Thursday, January 30th.

Manulife Financial Trading Down 2.1 %

Shares of Manulife Financial stock opened at C$41.21 on Thursday. Manulife Financial has a twelve month low of C$31.24 and a twelve month high of C$46.42. The stock has a market capitalization of C$72.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.82, a PEG ratio of 1.01 and a beta of 1.06. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is C$43.38 and its 200-day simple moving average is C$42.23.

Manulife Financial Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 19th. Investors of record on Wednesday, March 19th will be issued a dividend of $0.44 per share. This is a boost from Manulife Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, March 5th. This represents a $1.76 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.27%. Manulife Financial’s payout ratio is presently 49.79%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Senior Officer Steve Finch sold 11,598 shares of Manulife Financial stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of C$43.43, for a total value of C$503,646.63. Also, Director Kenneth Michael Ross sold 3,219 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of C$44.91, for a total transaction of C$144,572.68. Insiders sold 18,683 shares of company stock worth $816,102 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.03% of the company’s stock.

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.