Manulife Financial (TSE:MFC) Shares Cross Above 200 Day Moving Average – What’s Next?

Shares of Manulife Financial Co. (TSE:MFC) (NYSE:MFC) crossed above its 200-day moving average during trading on Tuesday. The stock has a 200-day moving average of C$55.58 and traded as high as C$63.04. Manulife Financial shares last traded at C$62.16, with a volume of 6,153,784 shares traded.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MFC has been the subject of several analyst reports. TD raised their price objective on Manulife Financial from C$65.00 to C$67.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 6th. Scotia raised their target price on Manulife Financial from C$61.00 to C$67.00 and gave the company a “sector outperform” rating in a report on Friday, August 7th. BMO Capital Markets lifted their target price on Manulife Financial from C$67.00 to C$70.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, August 7th. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price target on shares of Manulife Financial from C$61.00 to C$70.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 21st. Finally, Scotiabank boosted their price objective on shares of Manulife Financial from C$56.00 to C$61.00 and gave the stock a “sector outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 15th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have issued a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of C$66.00.

Manulife Financial Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 26.52, a current ratio of 2.36 and a quick ratio of 2.58. The company has a fifty day moving average price of C$60.96 and a 200 day moving average price of C$55.79. The stock has a market cap of C$101.89 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.67, a P/E/G ratio of 1.01 and a beta of 0.60.

Manulife Financial (TSE:MFC) (NYSE:MFC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 5th. The financial services provider reported C$1.09 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. The firm had revenue of C$20.34 billion during the quarter. Manulife Financial had a net margin of 11.62% and a return on equity of 12.98%. On average, equities analysts expect that Manulife Financial Co. will post 3.6104452 EPS for the current year.

Manulife Financial Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 21st. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 21st were issued a $0.4850 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 21st. This represents a $1.94 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.2%. Manulife Financial’s dividend payout ratio is currently 50.14%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Manulife Financial news, insider Patrick David Graham sold 6,843 shares of Manulife Financial stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of C$62.06, for a total transaction of C$424,676.58. Company insiders own 0.03% of the company’s stock.

About Manulife Financial

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.