Manulife Financial (NYSE:MFC) Rating Increased to Outperform at National Bank Financial

Manulife Financial (NYSE:MFC) (TSE:MFC) was upgraded by research analysts at National Bank Financial from a “sector perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a report issued on Thursday, Briefing.com reports.

Several other research analysts have also recently commented on MFC. BMO Capital Markets raised Manulife Financial from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $31.00 to $35.00 in a research note on Thursday, February 15th. Desjardins raised Manulife Financial from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, February 15th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on shares of Manulife Financial in a research report on Thursday, February 22nd. They set a “buy” rating on the stock. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $33.33.

Manulife Financial Trading Up 0.9 %

Shares of Manulife Financial stock opened at $24.47 on Thursday. Manulife Financial has a twelve month low of $17.07 and a twelve month high of $25.14. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $23.94 and its 200 day moving average price is $21.94. The firm has a market capitalization of $43.94 billion, a PE ratio of 12.68, a P/E/G ratio of 0.89 and a beta of 1.08.

Manulife Financial (NYSE:MFC) (TSE:MFC) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, February 14th. The financial services provider reported $0.68 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.63 by $0.05. Manulife Financial had a net margin of 10.42% and a return on equity of 15.98%. The business had revenue of $10.96 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.57 billion. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Manulife Financial will post 2.7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Manulife Financial

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of MFC. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in Manulife Financial by 1.5% in the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 71,526,674 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,307,508,000 after buying an additional 1,086,776 shares during the period. TD Asset Management Inc boosted its stake in shares of Manulife Financial by 26.5% during the 4th quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 37,066,418 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $823,074,000 after acquiring an additional 7,766,870 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Manulife Financial in the 4th quarter worth $473,568,000. CIBC Asset Management Inc lifted its holdings in shares of Manulife Financial by 47.4% during the fourth quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 20,710,186 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $459,108,000 after purchasing an additional 6,663,997 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Scotia Capital Inc. boosted its position in shares of Manulife Financial by 1.3% in the 4th quarter. Scotia Capital Inc. now owns 12,840,402 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $283,277,000 after purchasing an additional 169,335 shares during the period. 52.56% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Manulife Financial Company Profile

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.