Sun Life Financial Inc. (NYSE:SLF) Receives Average Rating of “Moderate Buy” from Analysts

Sun Life Financial Inc. (NYSE:SLF) (TSE:SLF) has earned a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the twelve research firms that are currently covering the company, MarketBeat.com reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating on the company. The average twelve-month target price among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $86.50.

SLF has been the topic of several research analyst reports. National Bank Financial upgraded Sun Life Financial from a “sector perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, April 24th. Wall Street Zen downgraded Sun Life Financial from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Saturday. BMO Capital Markets restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Sun Life Financial in a research note on Friday, May 8th. TD Securities restated a “buy” rating on shares of Sun Life Financial in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. Finally, Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce restated a “neutral” rating on shares of Sun Life Financial in a research note on Friday, May 8th.

Sun Life Financial Trading Down 0.2%

Shares of NYSE:SLF opened at $73.10 on Friday. Sun Life Financial has a 12-month low of $56.22 and a 12-month high of $74.16. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $67.54 and its 200-day simple moving average is $64.12. The company has a market capitalization of $44.32 billion, a PE ratio of 18.84 and a beta of 0.91.

Sun Life Financial (NYSE:SLF) (TSE:SLF) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The financial services provider reported $1.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.35 by $0.03. Sun Life Financial had a return on equity of 17.80% and a net margin of 7.85%.The business had revenue of $6.41 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $925.99 million. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.82 EPS. Research analysts predict that Sun Life Financial will post 5.74 EPS for the current year.

Sun Life Financial Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Investors of record on Wednesday, May 27th will be paid a dividend of $0.96 per share. This is a positive change from Sun Life Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.92. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, May 27th. This represents a $3.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.3%. Sun Life Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 72.68%.

Institutional Trading of Sun Life Financial

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in SLF. Cassaday & Co Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Sun Life Financial during the 1st quarter valued at about $25,000. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC grew its stake in Sun Life Financial by 68.4% during the 4th quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 411 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 167 shares during the last quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. purchased a new stake in Sun Life Financial during the 4th quarter valued at about $30,000. Sittner & Nelson LLC purchased a new stake in Sun Life Financial during the 4th quarter valued at about $33,000. Finally, Scarborough Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Sun Life Financial during the 1st quarter valued at about $33,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 52.26% of the company’s stock.

Sun Life Financial Company Profile

Sun Life Financial Inc, founded in 1865 and headquartered in Toronto, Ontario, is an international financial services organization that provides a range of insurance, wealth management and asset management solutions. The company serves individual and institutional clients, offering products designed to protect against life and health risks, help clients save for retirement, and manage investments on behalf of customers and third parties.

Core business activities include life and health insurance, group benefits for employers, retirement and pension products, and wealth management services such as mutual funds and segregated fund solutions.