Image Source: Pixabay

The portfolio of stocks I started building on September 8, at a one stock per week pace for the next year, is named Vista. I will select its eleventh stock this weekend. Vista is the sixth portfolio I've built (at a one dividend dog per-week pace) since 2014. Six portfolios = VI for Vista!

Vista is planned to Look Ahead for Outstanding, Proven, Dividend Winners. (Like Aristocrats)

Today we'll review the first of four financial services sector stock candidates vying to be that twelfth selection and second of nine financial services members of the Vista portfolio.

My subject today is a large-cap life insurance company, named Manulife Financial Corporation. Its trading ticker symbol is MFC. This is my first report on Manulife Financial Corporation for Vista. I have previously reported on MFC for several of my five previous portfolios.

Manulife provides life insurance and wealth management products and services to individuals and group customers in Canada, the United States, and Asia. 

Manulife is one of Canada’s Big Three Life Insurance companies (the other two are Sun Life and Great-West Life). 

As of June 30, 2020, Manulife reported assets under management or administration exceeding CAD $1.2 trillion.

Additionally, the company holds and manages oil and gas properties; holds oil and gas royalties, and foreign bonds and equities; and provides investment management, counseling, advisory, and dealer services. 

Manulife Financial Corporation was founded in 1887 and is headquartered in Toronto, Canada.

I use three key data points to gauge dividend equities or funds like Manulife Financial Corporation:

(1) Price

(2) Dividends

(3) Returns

Those three basic keys best tell whether a company has made, is making, and will make money. 

MFC Price

Manulife's price per share closed at $16.44 Friday. A year ago its price was $19.41. Price fell $2.97 or about 15.3% last year.

If Manulife's stock trades in the range of $10 to $20 this next year, its recent $16.44 price might rise by $1.06 to reach $17.50 by November 23, 2021. 

MFC Dividends

Manulife's most recently declared quarterly dividend was $0.2143 payable December 21st. Dividends are estimated to total $0.86 per share annually and yield 5.21% at Friday's $16.44 closing price.

MFC Gains?

Adding the $0.86 annual anticipated dividend to my $1.06 optimistic estimate of Manulife Financial Corporation's price upside shows a $1.92 potential gross gain, per share, to be reduced by any costs to trade the shares.  

Put little over $1,000.00 today in Manulife Financial Corporation at $16.44 and we would buy 61 shares of MFC stock.

A $10 broker fee (if any) paid half at purchase and half at sale could cost us about $0.16 per share.

Subtract that $0.16 brokerage cost from my estimated $1.92 gross gain per share results in a net gain of $1.76 X 61 shares = $107.36 for a 10.73% net gain on a $1,002.84 investment.

So it goes that Manulife Financial Corporation shows a possible 10.7% net gain including a 5.21% dividend yield. It could be more, it could be less.  

All of the estimates above are speculation based on the past history of Manulife Financial Corporation. Only time and money invested in this stock will determine its worth.