Manulife Financial (TSE:MFC) Shares Cross Above 200-Day Moving Average – Should You Sell?

Manulife Financial Co. (TSE:MFC) (NYSE:MFC) shares passed above its 200-day moving average during trading on Friday . The stock has a 200-day moving average of C$50.15 and traded as high as C$52.94. Manulife Financial shares last traded at C$52.73, with a volume of 21,736,018 shares.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on the stock. National Bank Financial upped their price objective on shares of Manulife Financial from C$56.00 to C$59.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, May 14th. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their price objective on shares of Manulife Financial from C$52.00 to C$55.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, February 13th. TD Securities cut their price objective on shares of Manulife Financial from C$60.00 to C$59.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 12th. Desjardins set a C$58.00 price target on shares of Manulife Financial and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, April 17th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group increased their price target on shares of Manulife Financial from C$54.00 to C$58.00 in a report on Monday, February 2nd. One research 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’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Manulife Financial has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of C$57.00.

Manulife Financial Price Performance

The company has a market cap of C$88.00 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.20, a P/E/G ratio of 1.01 and a beta of 0.74. The stock’s 50-day moving average is C$51.43 and its two-hundred day moving average is C$50.15.

Manulife Financial (TSE:MFC) (NYSE:MFC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 13th. The financial services provider reported C$1.06 earnings per share for the quarter. The company had revenue of C$2.15 billion for the quarter. Manulife Financial had a net margin of 11.97% and a return on equity of 12.65%. On average, analysts predict that Manulife Financial Co. will post 3.6104452 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Manulife Financial

In other Manulife Financial news, Director Aimee Decamillo sold 18,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of C$51.77, for a total value of C$931,860.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 4,996 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately C$258,642.92. This represents a 78.27% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Also, insider Rahul Madhav Joshi sold 50,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of C$53.76, for a total value of C$2,688,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 27,186 shares in the company, valued at approximately C$1,461,519.36. This represents a 64.78% decrease in their position. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 73,834 shares of company stock valued at $3,906,579. Corporate 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.