Top Canadian insurers with gains ahead

Article Excerpt

Both of these Canadian insurance stocks provide investors with high dividend yields. They also offer strong.growth prospects. We see each as a buy. MANULIFE FINANCIAL, $43.73, is a buy. This safety-conscious stock (Toronto symbol MFC; Shares outstanding: 1.7 billion; Market cap: $74.9 billion; TSINetwork Rating: Above Average; Dividend yield: 4.0%; www.manulife.ca) represents one of Canada’s largest life insurers. It’s also a leading insurer in Vietnam, Cambodia, Singapore, and the Philippines. The company sells other forms of insurance including health, dental and travel plans; Manulife’s mutual funds and investment management services further diversify its revenue stream. On March 31, 2025, the insurer had $1.6 trillion in assets under administration. Markets outside of Canada—especially Asia (37% of earnings)—increasingly contribute to Manulife’s growth­. In the quarter ended March 31, 2025, per-share earnings rose 8.8%, to $0.99 from $0.91. That gain was due to stronger earnings at its Canadian, Asian and global wealth and asset management businesses; they were only partly offset by weaker results in the U.S. Manulife’s $5.4 billion reinsurance agreement…