Manulife Financial Corporation MFC has opportunities to improve Global Wealth and Asset Management (Global WAM) growth and sustain positive net flows. Global WAM benefits from recurring fee income, a diversified investment platform and acquisitions that expand its capabilities.
In the second quarter of 2026, Global WAM generated net inflows of C$0.4 billion, down from C$0.9 billion in the year-earlier quarter. Institutional asset management benefited from contributions from CQS and Comvest and record gross flows, supporting its ability to attract assets from institutional clients.
Retail wealth remains another important area to watch. Retail net outflows narrowed to C$1.4 billion in the second quarter from C$3.2 billion a year earlier, reflecting improved flows in mainland China, the United States and Canada. Expanding ETF-based investment solutions and strengthening digital wealth capabilities could help Manulife attract new clients and retain existing assets.
Retirement flows represent a more significant challenge. The business recorded C$4.9 billion in net outflows in the second quarter compared with C$2 billion in net inflows in the prior-year quarter, reflecting higher plan redemptions and member withdrawals. These outflows can offset gains elsewhere in Global WAM and constrain the growth of assets generating recurring management fees. Better retention would help stabilize the asset base and make fee income more predictable.
Profitability, meanwhile, offers a source of support. Global WAM's core earnings increased 9% year over year, while its core EBITDA margin expanded 110 basis points to 31.2%, aided by higher average assets under management and administration (AUMA) and contributions from acquisitions.
Overall, MFC has several avenues to improve Global WAM growth, but sustaining positive net flows will require more consistent performance across institutional, retail and retirement businesses.
What About Its Peers?
Sun Life Financial Inc.'s SLF diversified asset-management businesses, including MFS Investment Management and SLC Management, provide opportunities to attract institutional and retail assets and generate recurring fee income. However, market fluctuations may affect investment performance and the value of client assets, while competitive pricing pressures could constrain margins. Sun Life's ability to sustain positive net flows will depend on investment performance, distribution strength, client retention and its capacity to attract new institutional mandates.
Prudential Financial, Inc.’s PRU asset-management arm, PGIM, can support growth through demand for fixed-income strategies, alternative investments and institutional investment solutions, while recurring management fees provide a source of relatively stable revenue. However, outflows from certain investment strategies, shifts in client asset allocations and competition from lower-cost passive products could constrain assets under management and fee income. To sustain growth, Prudential will need to strengthen institutional and retail distribution, deliver competitive investment returns and attract new client assets to offset withdrawals.
MFC’s Price Performance
Shares of MFC have gained 33.5% in the past year, outperforming the industry.
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MFC’s Overvaluation
The stock is overvalued compared with its industry. It is currently trading at a price-to-earnings multiple of 12.94, higher than the industry average of 10.53. It carries a Value Score of A.
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Estimate Movement for MFC
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for MFC’s third-quarter and fourth-quarter 2026 EPS has moved up 2.4% and 1.2%, respectively, in the past 60 days. The same for full-year 2026 EPS has moved down 0.9%, and 2027 EPS has moved up 4.3% in the past 60 days.
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The consensus estimate for MFC’s 2027 EPS and revenues indicates a year-over-year increase.
MFC stock currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.
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This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).