Manulife Financial (TSE:MFC) Reaches New 12-Month High – Still a Buy?

Manulife Financial Co. (TSE:MFC) (NYSE:MFC) shares reached a new 52-week high on Monday . The stock traded as high as C$59.30 and last traded at C$58.87, with a volume of 829454 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at C$58.83.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MFC has been the topic of several research reports. TD lowered their price target on shares of Manulife Financial from C$59.00 to C$58.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, May 14th. Desjardins set a C$58.00 price objective on shares of Manulife Financial and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, April 17th. Finally, National Bank Financial lifted their price objective on shares of Manulife Financial from C$56.00 to C$59.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 14th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have assigned a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of C$57.00.

Manulife Financial Stock Performance

The stock has a market cap of C$97.39 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.85, a P/E/G ratio of 1.01 and a beta of 0.71. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of C$54.66 and a 200-day moving average price of C$51.49.

Manulife Financial (TSE:MFC) (NYSE:MFC) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 13th. The financial services provider reported C$1.06 earnings per share for the quarter. Manulife Financial had a net margin of 11.97% and a return on equity of 12.60%. The firm had revenue of C$2.15 billion for the quarter. Sell-side analysts forecast that Manulife Financial Co. will post 3.6104452 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Manulife Financial

In related news, Director Anthony Alex Silva sold 1,100 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of C$53.17, for a total value of C$58,487.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 7,075 shares of the company’s stock, valued at C$376,177.75. This trade represents a 13.46% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Also, insider Rahul Madhav Joshi sold 25,000 shares of Manulife Financial stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of C$54.29, for a total value of C$1,357,250.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 77,185 shares in the company, valued at approximately C$4,190,373.65. This represents a 24.47% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Insiders sold a total of 136,834 shares of company stock worth $7,311,659 over the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.03% of the company’s stock.

Manulife Financial Company Profile

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.