Manulife Q2 Earnings Miss Estimates, APE Sales Rise Y/Y

Manulife Financial Corporation MFC delivered second-quarter 2025 core earnings of 69 cents per share, which missed the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 2.8%. The bottom line improved 4.5% year over year.

Core earnings of $1.2 billion (C$1.7 billion) decreased 7.6% year over year as strong business growth in Global WAM, Asia, and Canada was offset by unfavorable life insurance claims experience in the United States and strengthened ECL provisions.

New business value (NBV) in the reported quarter was $611 million (C$846 million), up 15.7% year over year.

New business contractual service margin (CSM) of $637 million (C$882 million) rose 38.7% year over year.

Annualized premium equivalent (APE) sales increased 12.8% year over year to $1.58 billion (C$2.2 billion).

New business CSM, APE sales, and NBV increased, reflecting continued sales momentum and margin expansions.

Global wealth and asset management average assets under management and administration were $726 billion (C$1,005 billion), up 6.4% year over year. Retail net outflows of $3.2 billion surged 32-fold year over year, as lower net sales through third-party intermediaries in North America and money market funds in Mainland China. This was partially offset by higher net sales through our retail wealth platform.

Core return on equity, measuring the company’s profitability, contracted 70 bps year over year to 15%. The financial leverage ratio improved 140 basis points to 25.6% at the end of the quarter.

Life Insurance Capital Adequacy Test ratio was 136% as of June 30, 2025. Adjusted book value per common share was $35.78, up 7.4% year over year.

Segmental Performance

Global Wealth and Asset Management division’s core earnings came in at $334 million (C$463 million), up 14.5% year over year.
Asia division’s core earnings totaled $520 million, up 13% year over year. APE sales, new business CSM, and NBV increased 31%, 34% and 28%, respectively, year over year, reflecting higher sales volumes in Hong Kong and Asia Other.

Manulife Financial’s Canada division’s core earnings of $302 million (C$419 million) were up 2.7% year over year. APE sales decreased 34% and NBV increased 1%. New business CSM grew 32%, reflecting strong sales growth in Individual Insurance.

The U.S. division reported core earnings of $141 million, down 53% year over year, reflecting unfavorable life insurance claims experience, lower investment spreads, and strengthened ECL provisions. U.S. delivered strong business growth this quarter, increasing APE sales, new business CSM, and NBV by 40%, 59% and 12%, respectively, reflecting continued demand for accumulation insurance products.

Zacks Rank

Manulife Financial currently carries a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

Performance of Other Life Insurers

Reinsurance Group of America, Incorporated RGA reported second-quarter 2025 adjusted operating earnings of $4.72 per share, which missed the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 15.4%. The bottom line decreased 13.9% from the year-ago quarter. Net foreign currency fluctuations had a favorable effect of 12 cents per share on adjusted operating income compared with the prior year. RGA's operating revenues of $5.6 billion improved 9.6% year over year. It missed the consensus estimate by 1.1%. Net premiums of $4.2 billion increased 5.9% year over year.

Investment income and net of related expenses increased 30.1% from the prior-year quarter to $1.4 billion. The average investment yield increased 66 basis points to 5.3%. Total benefits and expenses at Reinsurance Group climbed 14.1% year over year to $5.2 billion.

Voya Financial, Inc. VOYA reported second-quarter 2025 adjusted operating earnings of $2.4 per share, which beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 14.8%. The bottom line increased 5.7% year over year. Adjusted operating revenues amounted to $356 million, up 9.8% year over year. The top line beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 19.4%. 

Net investment income increased 12.7% year over year to $584 million. Moreover, fee income of $577 million increased 11.7% year over year. Premiums totaled $718 million, down 9.1% from the year-ago quarter. Total benefits and expenses were $1.8 billion, up 2.1% from the year-ago quarter.

Lincoln National Corporation LNC reported second-quarter adjusted earnings per share of $2.36, which surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 23.6%. The bottom line climbed 28.3% year over year. Adjusted operating revenues grew 4.4% year over year to $4.7 billion. The top line surpassed the consensus mark by 1.2%. LNC’s estimated RBC ratio rose to more than 420% at the second-quarter end. Insurance premiums advanced 3.5% year over year to $1.7 billion, higher than the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 0.3%.

Fee income was $1.3 billion, which improved 0.1% year over year but missed the consensus mark by 1%. Net investment income advanced 10.1% year over year to $1.5 billion, which beat the consensus mark of $1.4 billion. Meanwhile, other revenues of $197 million rose 1.5% year over year in the quarter under review. Total expenses declined 21.2% year over year to $3.2 billion. 

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