Sun Life Financial (NYSE:SLF) Posts Earnings Results, Beats Estimates By $0.02 EPS

Sun Life Financial (NYSE:SLF) (TSE:SLF) released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday. The financial services provider reported $1.47 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.45 by $0.02, reports. The firm had revenue of $986.89 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $986.89 million. Sun Life Financial had a net margin of 7.66% and a return on equity of 17.96%.

Sun Life Financial Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE SLF traded down $8.51 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $73.47. 1,015,257 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 676,843. The company has a market cap of $40.81 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.17, a PEG ratio of 1.99 and a beta of 0.86. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $79.42 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $73.58. Sun Life Financial has a twelve month low of $57.22 and a twelve month high of $84.38.

Sun Life Financial Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 31st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, November 25th will be issued a dividend of C$1.00 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, November 25th. This is a positive change from Sun Life Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of C$0.96. This represents a $4.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.4%. Sun Life Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 63.79%.

More Sun Life Financial News

Here are the key news stories impacting Sun Life Financial this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Underlying EPS increased by double digits, with growth across Canada, Asia, U.S. stop-loss and GreenOak. Reported EPS of $1.47 also narrowly beat the $1.45 consensus estimate. Sun Life Q3 results
• Positive Sentiment: The board raised the quarterly common-share dividend by 4 cents to $1.00 per share, a 4.1% increase—supportive for income-focused investors. Dividend announcement
• Neutral Sentiment: Revenue was about $986.9 million, in line with analysts’ expectations, offering little surprise on that measure. Quarterly earnings summary
• Negative Sentiment: Despite stronger underlying earnings, reported Q3 profit fell 29%, a headline result that may be contributing to investor concern. Sun Life Q3 profit report
• Negative Sentiment: TD Cowen cut its rating from Buy to Hold, and National Bank Financial lowered its rating from Outperform to Sector Perform. The downgrades add pressure even as TD Cowen set a CA$115 price target. TD Cowen downgrade

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

SLF has been the subject of several research reports. TD Securities reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Sun Life Financial in a report on Friday, August 7th. Argus boosted their price objective on Sun Life Financial from $81.00 to $88.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 3rd. National Bank Financial lowered shares of Sun Life Financial from an “outperform” rating to a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Thursday. Scotiabank raised Sun Life Financial from a “sector perform” rating to a “sector outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 27th. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised shares of Sun Life Financial from a “buy (a-)” rating to a “buy (a)” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 29th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have given a Buy rating, five have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $103.50.

About Sun Life Financial

Sun Life Financial Inc (NYSE: SLF) is a Canadian financial services company that provides insurance, wealth, and asset management solutions to individuals, businesses, and institutions. Its offerings include life, health, and dental insurance; retirement and savings products; investment solutions; and employee benefits.

Through its asset management businesses, Sun Life provides investment management and advisory services to institutional and retail clients. The company also offers workplace pension, group insurance, and employee wellness programs, helping employers support the financial security and health of their employees.

Founded in Montreal in 1865, Sun Life serves clients primarily in Canada, the United States, and several Asian markets, including Hong Kong, the Philippines, Indonesia, India, and Vietnam.