Manulife sustains earnings quality through derisking efforts

The company has a history of stable earnings and continues to report favorable earnings, AM Best said.

Manulife Financial Corporation, including its subsidiaries, enjoys strong operating performance, a favorable business profile, and “very strong” enterprise risk management, said AM Best.

Manulife has a history of stable earnings and continues to report favorable earnings in its core lines of business, despite some fluctuations year to year, said AM Best in a December 2025 assessment.

“The company’s earnings are reflective of its diverse business model, which includes a robust insurance and wealth & asset management product offering, geographic diversification throughout Asia, Canada and the United States and a strong market presence, with [Manulife] holding leading market positions in its core lines of business,” AM Best wrote in its assessment, where it affirmed the insurer’s A+ (Superior) financial strength rating.

The company has also taken steps over the past several years to derisk its book of business by reinsuring billions of low return-on-equity and non-core business lines, particularly long-term care insurance, it added.

Manulife’s ERM program is judged as “very strong” by AM Best.

These strengths are offset by Manulife’s remaining exposure to its non-core business lines, including long-term care and universal life with secondary guarantees.

Manulife does have prudent management of these blocks of business through loss prevention initiatives, policy conversion programs, reinsurance and conservative reserving practices, AM Best said.

“Whilst the alternative long-duration asset portfolio has exhibited some volatility, it has demonstrated a favorable historical track record and generally has enhanced Manulife’s investment yield whilst providing investment diversity,” it wrote.