Manulife Financial Co. (MFC) to Issue Quarterly Dividend of $0.30 on December 19th

Manulife Financial Co. (NYSE:MFC) (TSE:MFC) declared a quarterly dividend on Wednesday, November 6th,Zacks Dividends reports. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, November 20th will be paid a dividend of 0.296 per share by the financial services provider on Thursday, December 19th. This represents a $1.18 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.63%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, November 20th. This is an increase from Manulife Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.29.

Manulife Financial has increased its dividend payment by an average of 9.2% annually over the last three years and has raised its dividend every year for the last 11 years. Manulife Financial has a payout ratio of 39.2% indicating that its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Analysts expect Manulife Financial to earn $3.00 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $1.15 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 38.3%.

Manulife Financial Stock Down 0.6 %

Shares of MFC stock opened at $32.66 on Monday. The business has a 50 day moving average of $29.91 and a two-hundred day moving average of $27.43. Manulife Financial has a 52 week low of $18.80 and a 52 week high of $33.07. The company has a market cap of $57.22 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.78, a PEG ratio of 1.19 and a beta of 1.08.

Manulife Financial (NYSE:MFC) (TSE:MFC) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, November 6th. The financial services provider reported $1.00 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.70 by $0.30. The firm had revenue of $10.69 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.73 billion. Manulife Financial had a return on equity of 16.11% and a net margin of 9.79%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.69 earnings per share. Analysts expect that Manulife Financial will post 2.74 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently commented on MFC. Barclays started coverage on shares of Manulife Financial in a report on Thursday, September 5th. They set an “equal weight” rating on the stock. Dbs Bank raised shares of Manulife Financial to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 8th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Manulife Financial has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $37.50.

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.