Manulife Financial Co. (NYSE:MFC) Plans Quarterly Dividend of $0.31

Manulife Financial Co. (NYSE:MFC) (TSE:MFC) declared a quarterly dividend on Thursday, February 20th, Wall Street Journal reports. Investors 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 yield of 3.89%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, March 5th. This is a boost from Manulife Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.30.

Manulife Financial has increased its dividend payment by an average of 11.0% annually over the last three years and has raised its dividend every year for the last 11 years. Manulife Financial has a dividend payout ratio of 35.6% indicating that its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Research analysts expect Manulife Financial to earn $2.88 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 38.5%.

Manulife Financial Stock Up 6.9 %

Shares of NYSE MFC traded up $2.05 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $31.83. The stock had a trading volume of 3,364,810 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,014,587. The business’s 50 day moving average is $30.31 and its 200-day moving average is $29.70. Manulife Financial has a 52 week low of $22.61 and a 52 week high of $33.07. The company has a market cap of $54.84 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.37, a PEG ratio of 1.04 and a beta of 1.09.

Manulife Financial (NYSE:MFC) (TSE:MFC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 19th. The financial services provider reported $0.74 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.67 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $9.31 billion for the quarter. Manulife Financial had a return on equity of 16.11% and a net margin of 9.79%. As a group, analysts expect that Manulife Financial will post 2.65 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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.