Seek Returns

L vs. MFC: Loews vs. Manulife Financial Stock Comparison

How do Loews (L) and Manulife Financial (MFC) stack up? This page sets them side by side across company profile, performance and risk, profitability, growth, financial strength, dividends, and valuation, with selected fundamentals also measured against each stock's industry-group peers.

Company Profile

Loews (L) and Manulife Financial (MFC) both belong to the Insurance industry, though L is classified under Property & Casualty Insurance while MFC falls under Life & Health Insurance.

Company profile comparison for Loews (L) and Manulife Financial (MFC)
Profile ItemLMFC
NameLoews Corp.Manulife Financial Corporation
Country/RegionUnited StatesCanada
GICS SectorFinancialsFinancials
GICS Industry GroupInsuranceInsurance
GICS IndustryInsuranceInsurance
GICS Sub-IndustryProperty & Casualty InsuranceLife & Health Insurance
Market Capitalization22.19 billion USD71.43 billion USD
CurrencyUSDUSD
ExchangeNYSENYSE
Listing DateMarch 17, 1980September 24, 1999
Security TypeCommon StockCommon Stock

Price Performance

Cumulative Growth

L
MFC
GSPC
Loading price history…
Loews (L) vs. Manulife Financial (MFC), with S&P 500 (GSPC) for reference: Growth of a $10,000 investment over the past five years. Adjusted for dividends and splits.

Trailing Returns

Loading price history…
Trailing total returns for Loews (L) and Manulife Financial (MFC). Returns over one year are annualized.

Calendar-Year Returns

Loading price history…
Calendar-year total returns for Loews (L) and Manulife Financial (MFC). Each bar is that year's total return, measured year-end to year-end.

Performance Metrics

Price performance metrics for Loews (L) and Manulife Financial (MFC)
MetricLMFC
Total Return (1Y)7.24%36.28%
Total Return (3Y, Annualized)19.27%38.35%
Total Return (5Y, Annualized)14.13%22.50%

Risk Profile

Drawdown History

L
MFC
GSPC
Loading price history…
Loews (L) vs. Manulife Financial (MFC), with S&P 500 (GSPC) for reference: Drawdown from the running peak over the past five years. Each line shows the decline from its prior peak; 0% marks a new high.

Return Distribution

Loading price history…
Distribution of monthly total returns for Loews (L) and Manulife Financial (MFC). Each bar is the share of months whose return fell in that 5% bucket.

Risk Metrics

Risk profile metrics for Loews (L) and Manulife Financial (MFC)
MetricLMFC
Volatility (1Y, Annualized)16.13%20.87%
Beta (5Y)0.490.85
Max Drawdown (5Y)-26.11%-26.99%
Avg. Volume (3M)805.54K1.92M

Risk-Adjusted Performance

Risk-Return Positioning

Loading chart…
L and MFC are plotted by 1-year volatility (risk) and 1-year return. The dashed Capital Allocation Line runs from the risk-free rate through the shared industry median.

Risk-Adjusted Metrics

Risk-adjusted metrics for Loews (L) and Manulife Financial (MFC)
MetricLMFC
Sharpe Ratio (1Y)0.181.53
Sortino Ratio (1Y)0.262.19

Profitability

ROE (TTM)

Manulife Financial (MFC) at 12.24% is around its peer norm for ROE, while Loews (L) at 8.21% drops into the bottom quartile, signaling weaker returns on shareholders’ equity.

L

Insurance industry group

8.21%

Max
41.68%
Q3
22.04%
Median
14.81%
Q1
8.79%
L
8.21%
Min
-10.66%

MFC

Insurance industry group

12.24%

Max
41.68%
Q3
22.04%
Median
14.81%
MFC
12.24%
Q1
8.79%
Min
-10.66%
Loading chart…
Loews (L) vs. Manulife Financial (MFC): A comparison of their ROE against the Insurance industry group benchmark.

Net Margin (TTM)

Manulife Financial (MFC) at 18.97% retains a top-quartile share of revenue as profit, ahead of Loews (L) at 7.93%, which keeps about the industry-typical share.

L

Insurance industry group

7.93%

Max
29.92%
Q3
17.03%
Median
10.97%
L
7.93%
Q1
6.21%
Min
-4.68%

MFC

Insurance industry group

18.97%

Max
29.92%
MFC
18.97%
Q3
17.03%
Median
10.97%
Q1
6.21%
Min
-4.68%
Loading chart…
Loews (L) vs. Manulife Financial (MFC): A comparison of their net margin against the Insurance industry group benchmark.

Operating Margin (TTM)

Neither side reports a meaningful operating margin: for Loews (L) in Insurance and Manulife Financial (MFC) in Insurance, funding costs are part of the core business, so net margin and ROE are the cleaner profitability reads.

Profitability Metrics

Profitability metrics for Loews (L) and Manulife Financial (MFC)
MetricLMFC
ROE (TTM)8.21%12.24%
ROA (TTM)1.71%0.59%
Net Margin (TTM)7.93%18.97%
Operating Margin (TTM)----
Gross Margin (TTM)----

Growth

Revenue Growth

Only one side can be read here: Loews (L) reports revenue growth of 5.44%, ranked against its industry; Manulife Financial (MFC) has no revenue growth figure this period.

Loading chart…
Loews (L) vs. Manulife Financial (MFC): A comparison of their Revenue Growth across different time periods.

EPS Growth

Both Loews (L) at 24.34% and Manulife Financial (MFC) at 8.10% land near their industries' usual EPS growth ranges, so bottom-line momentum looks broadly in line with peers on both sides.

Loading chart…
Loews (L) vs. Manulife Financial (MFC): A comparison of their EPS Growth across different time periods.

Growth Metrics

Growth metrics for Loews (L) and Manulife Financial (MFC)
MetricLMFC
Revenue Growth (YoY)5.44%--
Revenue Growth (3Y CAGR)8.96%29.95%
EPS Growth (YoY)24.34%8.10%
EPS Growth (3Y CAGR)33.10%-5.86%

Financial Strength

Current Ratio (MRQ)

current ratio doesn’t apply on either side: Loews (L) in Insurance and Manulife Financial (MFC) in Insurance both report balance sheets without a current/non-current split, so their short-term liquidity is better judged through regulatory and funding measures.

Debt / Equity (MRQ)

debt-to-equity ratio is set aside for both: Loews (L) in Insurance and Manulife Financial (MFC) in Insurance run businesses where balance-sheet leverage is part of the model, so capital-adequacy and funding measures are the better gauges of balance-sheet risk.

Financial Strength Metrics

Financial strength metrics for Loews (L) and Manulife Financial (MFC)
MetricLMFC
Current Ratio (MRQ)----
Debt / Equity (MRQ)----
Net Debt / EBITDA----

Dividends

Dividend Yield (TTM)

Manulife Financial (MFC) at 4.32% delivers top-quartile income for its industry, while Loews (L) at 0.23% pays a more typical yield — both are credible income propositions, MFC the richer one.

L

Insurance industry group

0.23%

Max
5.12%
Q3
2.15%
Median
0.98%
L
0.23%
Q1
0.00%
Min
0.00%

MFC

Insurance industry group

4.32%

Max
5.12%
MFC
4.32%
Q3
2.15%
Median
0.98%
Q1
0.00%
Min
0.00%
Loading chart…
Loews (L) vs. Manulife Financial (MFC): A comparison of their dividend yield against the Insurance industry group benchmark.

Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)

Loews (L) at 3.46% pays out a band-typical share of earnings, while Manulife Financial (MFC) at 54.30% distributes more than its industry norm — less retained, thinner cover.

L

Insurance industry group

3.46%

Max
76.67%
Q3
35.18%
Median
14.74%
L
3.46%
Q1
0.00%
Min
0.00%

MFC

Insurance industry group

54.30%

Max
76.67%
MFC
54.30%
Q3
35.18%
Median
14.74%
Q1
0.00%
Min
0.00%
Loading chart…
Loews (L) vs. Manulife Financial (MFC): A comparison of their payout ratio against the Insurance industry group benchmark.

Dividend Metrics

Dividend metrics for Loews (L) and Manulife Financial (MFC)
MetricLMFC
Dividend Yield (TTM)0.23%4.32%
Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)3.46%54.30%

Valuation

P/E Ratio (TTM)

Both Loews (L) at 15.17 and Manulife Financial (MFC) at 17.23 land around their industries’ usual P/E ratio levels — neither is getting a clear earnings-multiple discount or premium versus peers.

L

Insurance industry group

15.17

Max
28.37
Q3
18.75
L
15.17
Median
12.23
Q1
9.08
Min
2.32

MFC

Insurance industry group

17.23

Max
28.37
Q3
18.75
MFC
17.23
Median
12.23
Q1
9.08
Min
2.32
Loading chart…
Loews (L) vs. Manulife Financial (MFC): A comparison of their P/E ratio against the Insurance industry group benchmark.

P/S Ratio (TTM)

On P/S ratio, both Loews (L) at 1.18 and Manulife Financial (MFC) at 2.11 are priced roughly in line with their industries — neither looks cheap nor rich on a sales basis.

L

Insurance industry group

1.18

Max
4.03
Q3
2.25
Median
1.23
L
1.18
Q1
0.85
Min
0.07

MFC

Insurance industry group

2.11

Max
4.03
Q3
2.25
MFC
2.11
Median
1.23
Q1
0.85
Min
0.07
Loading chart…
Loews (L) vs. Manulife Financial (MFC): A comparison of their P/S ratio against the Insurance industry group benchmark.

P/B Ratio (MRQ)

Loews (L) at 1.22 sits in the lower P/B ratio quartile against book while Manulife Financial (MFC) at 2.13 is valued near its industry’s middle — L is cheaper on assets, though weigh it against ROE and asset quality.

L

Insurance industry group

1.22

Max
5.07
Q3
2.79
Median
1.76
Q1
1.23
L
1.22
Min
0.30

MFC

Insurance industry group

2.13

Max
5.07
Q3
2.79
MFC
2.13
Median
1.76
Q1
1.23
Min
0.30
Loading chart…
Loews (L) vs. Manulife Financial (MFC): A comparison of their P/B ratio against the Insurance industry group benchmark.

Valuation Metrics

Valuation metrics for Loews (L) and Manulife Financial (MFC)
MetricLMFC
P/E Ratio (TTM)15.1717.23
P/S Ratio (TTM)1.182.11
P/B Ratio (MRQ)1.222.13
Free Cash Flow Yield (TTM)----