Manulife Financial Co. (NYSE:MFC) Raises Dividend to $0.31 Per Share

Manulife Financial Co. (NYSE:MFC) (TSE:MFC) declared a quarterly dividend on Thursday, February 20th, Wall Street Journal reports. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, March 5th will be paid a dividend of 0.3094 per share by the financial services provider on Wednesday, March 19th. This represents a $1.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.89%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, March 5th. This is an increase from Manulife Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.30.

Manulife Financial has increased its dividend payment by an average of 11.0% per year over the last three years and has raised its dividend annually for the last 11 consecutive years. Manulife Financial has a dividend payout ratio of 35.6% meaning its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Equities analysts expect Manulife Financial to earn $3.14 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $1.11 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 35.4%.

Manulife Financial Stock Up 6.9 %

MFC stock opened at $31.83 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $54.84 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.37, a PEG ratio of 1.04 and a beta of 1.09. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $30.33 and a 200-day simple moving average of $29.71. Manulife Financial has a 52 week low of $22.61 and a 52 week high of $33.07.

Manulife Financial (NYSE:MFC) (TSE:MFC) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 19th. The financial services provider reported $0.74 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.67 by $0.07. The company had revenue of $9.31 billion during the quarter. Manulife Financial had a return on equity of 16.15% and a net margin of 10.08%. As a group, analysts expect that Manulife Financial will post 2.88 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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.