Manulife’s net income increases 6% in 2024

Manulife Financial Corporation announced net income attributable to common shareholders of $1.6 billion in the fourth quarter of 2024. This is a decrease of $21 million compared to the same period last year.

For the full year, net income attributable to common shareholders stood at $5.4 billion, up $282 million or 6% compared to 2023.

Canada  

In Canada, net income attributable to shareholders amounted to $1.2 billion in 2024, up $30 million or 2.5% over 2023.

In the fourth quarter of 2024, net income attributable to shareholders was $439 million, compared with net income of $365 million in the fourth quarter of 2023. This is an increase of 20%.

The increase “primarily reflected more favourable insurance experience overall, and business growth in group Insurance,” stated the company in its management report.

United States  

For the United States segment, net income attributable to shareholders amounted to $103 million in the fourth quarter of 2024, compared with net income of $198 million in the fourth quarter of 2023.

For the full year 2024, net income attributable to shareholders amounted to $135 million, compared with net income of $639 million in 2023. This is a decrease of 80%.

Asia  

In Asia, net income attributable to shareholders was $2.4 billion in 2024, compared with $1.3 billion in 2023. This is an increase of 75%.

For the fourth quarter, net income attributable to shareholders reached $583 million in the fourth quarter of 2024, down 5% compared with net income of $615 million in the fourth quarter of 2023.

Global Wealth & Asset Management 

For the Global Wealth & Asset Management segment, net income attributable to shareholders reached $1.6 billion in fiscal 2024, compared with earnings of $1.3 billion reported in 2023. This is an increase of $300 million or 23%. Fourth-quarter net income attributable to shareholders was $384 million in the fourth quarter of 2024, compared with $365 million in the same period of 2023.

The Corporate and Other segment reported net income attributable to shareholders of $77 million for the full year 2024, compared with net income of $628 million in 2023. Fourth-quarter net income was $129 million in 2024, compared with net income of $116 million in the fourth quarter of 2023.

Core earnings were $1.9 billion in the fourth quarter of 2024, an increase of $134 million or 8% compared with the same quarter of 2023. For the full year, core earnings were $7.2 billion in 2024, compared with $6.7 billion the previous year.

Sales  

In 2024, annualized premium equivalent (APE) sales totalled $8.4 billion, an increase of $1.9 billion or 30% compared with fiscal 2023.

For the fourth quarter, APE sales were $2.2 billion in 2024, up 42% over the $1.6 billion announced for the same period in 2023.

Comparing sales in 2024 with those in 2023, APE sales climbed 36% in Asia, the insurer's largest market. Sales were also up 20% in Canada and 11% in the United States.

Insurance sales in 2024 totaled $7.5 billion. This is a 30% increase over the $5.7 billion reported in 2023.

Discussion with analysts 

A discussion between financial analysts and the management team took place on Feb. 20. President and CEO Roy Gori emphasizes that the record results achieved in 2024 prove the relevance of the Manulife transformation launched in 2017. “These transactions will unlock significant value for our shareholders,” he says.

Gori announced his departure from senior management last November. Phil Witherington, the future CEO, who will succeed Gori as CEO at the end of May 2025, paid tribute to him during the conference with analysts. Gori will stay on as an advisor to his replacement until the end of August.

Colin Simpson, Chief Financial Officer, recalled the signing of two reinsurance agreements in 2024. He also pointed out that APE sales climbed 63% in the fourth quarter of 2024 in Asia, compared to the prior quarter, “driven by broad-based growth across the region, led by Hong Kong.” 

Also discussed was the real estate portfolio, valued at $13.4 billion, of which 45% of the value comes from the United States, and the impact of weather-related claims. The fall 2024 hurricanes in the southeastern U.S. will have little impact, explains Marc Costantini, Manulife Financial Corporation - Global Head, Strategy & Inforce Management. “We do have a P&C retro business. And our exposure to the wildfires and events such as that has a limit of about US$90 million.” 

In its management report, the company disclosed an average occupancy rate of 84%, down from 87% in 2023. At Dec. 31, 2024, the company held a portfolio of office properties worth $4.6 billion, or 34% of its Alternative Long-Term Assets (ALDA) portfolio. A year earlier, the value reached $4.8 billion and represented 37% of the ALDA.

Manulife acknowledges the decline in the value of office properties, due to the shift in the workplace to remote work, and also that of commercial properties, due to the retail transformation. Nevertheless, the company says that the risk is mitigated by the diversification of its portfolio.

Share buybacks will continue to be part of the company's strategy to deliver greater shareholder value. Some 82 million shares, or 4.6% of outstanding shares, were repurchased and cancelled in 2024, at a cost of $3.2 billion. A new buyback program, targeting 3% of common shares, comes into effect at the end of February.