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

Shares of Sun Life Financial Inc. (TSE:SLF) (NYSE:SLF) have been assigned an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the ten research firms that are covering the company, MarketBeat reports. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month price target among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is C$76.82.

SLF has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Barclays set a C$76.00 price target on Sun Life Financial and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 5th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price target on shares of Sun Life Financial from C$76.00 to C$78.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 14th. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price target on shares of Sun Life Financial from C$81.00 to C$89.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. TD Securities cut their target price on shares of Sun Life Financial from C$73.00 to C$72.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, August 13th. Finally, National Bankshares increased their target price on Sun Life Financial from C$72.00 to C$73.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 13th.

Insider Activity

In other news, Senior Officer Linda Dougherty sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of C$75.30, for a total transaction of C$150,590.00. In related news, Senior Officer Daniel Fishbein sold 15,999 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of C$71.40, for a total transaction of C$1,142,323.80. Also, Senior Officer Linda Dougherty sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of C$75.30, for a total value of C$150,590.00. 0.03% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Sun Life Financial Stock Performance

TSE SLF opened at C$78.52 on Thursday. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is C$75.52 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is C$71.12. The stock has a market capitalization of C$45.27 billion, a PE ratio of 14.87, a P/E/G ratio of 1.33 and a beta of 0.94. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 53.77, a current ratio of 65.29 and a quick ratio of 84,866.00. Sun Life Financial has a 1 year low of C$61.84 and a 1 year high of C$79.45.

Sun Life Financial (TSE:SLF) (NYSE:SLF) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, August 12th. The financial services provider reported C$1.71 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of C$1.58 by C$0.13. Sun Life Financial had a return on equity of 13.65% and a net margin of 9.90%. The company had revenue of C$8.92 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of C$9.18 billion. Analysts predict that Sun Life Financial will post 6.9230769 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Sun Life Financial Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 27th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, August 28th were paid a dividend of $0.81 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, August 28th. This represents a $3.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.13%. Sun Life Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 61.36%.

About Sun Life Financial

Sun Life Financial Inc, a financial services company, provides savings, retirement, and pension products worldwide. The company operates in five segments: Asset Management, Canada, U.S., Asia, and Corporate. It offers various insurance products, such as term and permanent life; personal health, which includes prescription drugs, dental, and vision care; critical illness; long-term care; and disability, as well as reinsurance.