Corn futures closed with strength on Friday, as contracts were up 10 to 11 cents in the front  months. December managed to close with a 12 cent gain this week. The CmdtyView national average Cash Corn price as up 10 1/2 cents at $3.85 1/2. USDA’s monthly Crop Production report showed yield at 186.7 bpa, a 2.1 bpa drop from what wat reported in August. Acreage was raised another 1.47 million acres on the planted side (a near record 98.728 million) and 1.356 million on the harvested side, with production up ...

Core Viewpoint - Manulife Financial (MFC) shares have increased by approximately 2.9% since the last earnings report, underperforming the S&P 500, raising questions about the sustainability of this trend leading up to the next earnings release [1] Group 1: Earnings and Estimates - Estimates for Manulife have trended downward over the past month, indicating a negative sentiment among analysts [2] - The most recent earnings report is essential for understanding the key drivers affecting the stock's performance [1] Group 2: VGM Scores - Manulife has a subpar Growth Score of D, while its Momentum Score is slightly better at C; however, it received an A for Value, placing it in the top 20% for this investment strategy [3] - The aggregate VGM Score for Manulife is B, which is relevant for investors not focused on a single strategy [3] Group 3: Outlook - The overall trend of estimates has been downward, with no significant changes in the magnitude of these revisions, leading to a Zacks Rank of 3 (Hold) for Manulife [4] - The expectation is for an in-line return from the stock in the upcoming months [4]