Sun Life Financial (NYSE:SLF) Upgraded to Hold at Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Sun Life Financial (NYSE:SLF) (TSE:SLF) from a sell rating to a hold rating in a research report report published on Sunday.

A number of other brokerages also recently commented on SLF. TD Cowen restated a “buy” rating on shares of Sun Life Financial in a report on Thursday, May 7th. National Bank Financial raised shares of Sun Life Financial from a “sector perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, April 24th. TD Securities restated a “buy” rating on shares of Sun Life Financial in a report on Thursday, May 7th. Argus set a $81.00 target price on shares of Sun Life Financial in a research report on Wednesday, June 10th. Finally, Barclays reaffirmed an “underweight” rating on shares of Sun Life Financial in a research note on Tuesday, July 7th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have issued a Buy rating, five have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Sun Life Financial presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $84.67.

Sun Life Financial Price Performance

SLF opened at $82.19 on Friday. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $76.88 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $69.60. The firm has a market capitalization of $45.81 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.18 and a beta of 0.88. Sun Life Financial has a one year low of $56.22 and a one year high of $82.44.

Sun Life Financial (NYSE:SLF) (TSE:SLF) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 6th. The financial services provider reported $1.38 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.35 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $6.41 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $925.99 million. Sun Life Financial had a return on equity of 17.80% and a net margin of 7.85%.During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.82 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Sun Life Financial will post 5.69 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Sun Life Financial Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, May 27th were issued a dividend of $0.96 per share. This is a boost from Sun Life Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.92. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, May 27th. This represents a $3.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.7%. Sun Life Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 72.94%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Sun Life Financial

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Cassaday & Co Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Sun Life Financial during the first quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC boosted its position in shares of Sun Life Financial by 68.4% in the 4th quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 411 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 167 shares in the last quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. bought a new stake in shares of Sun Life Financial in the 4th quarter worth approximately $30,000. Sittner & Nelson LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Sun Life Financial in the 4th quarter worth approximately $33,000. Finally, Scarborough Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Sun Life Financial in the 1st quarter worth approximately $33,000. Institutional investors own 52.26% of the company’s stock.

About Sun Life Financial

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.