Manulife Earnings: Growth Remains Solid in the Asian Business

No-moat-rated Manulife Financial reported a good set of numbers with solid growth in the Asian business. The company reported core earnings of CAD 1.64 billion or CAD 0.83 per share in the second quarter versus CAD 1.53 billion or CAD 0.76 per share in the second quarter of the previous year on a constant currency basis. The second-quarter results equated to an annualized core return on equity of 15.5%. The company paid a quarterly dividend of CAD 0.365 per share in the second quarter of 2023, which represents a 5.5% dividend yield as per the current stock price. The adjusted book value stood at CAD 29.42 in the second quarter, up 5% compared with the prior-year quarter. We are maintaining our CAD 29 fair value estimate for Manulife after incorporating the second-quarter results.