Sun Life Financial (NYSE:SLF) Rating Increased to Buy at Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Sun Life Financial (NYSE:SLF) (TSE:SLF) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research note issued to investors on Saturday.

Several other brokerages also recently weighed in on SLF. Barclays reiterated an “underweight” rating on shares of Sun Life Financial in a research report on Thursday, January 8th. BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Sun Life Financial in a research note on Friday, February 13th. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating on shares of Sun Life Financial in a report on Friday, February 13th. Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce reissued a “neutral” rating on shares of Sun Life Financial in a report on Thursday, January 8th. Finally, National Bank Financial reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating on shares of Sun Life Financial in a research note on Thursday, November 6th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have issued a Buy rating, five have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $86.50.

Sun Life Financial Stock Up 0.3%

Sun Life Financial stock opened at $65.56 on Friday. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $63.98 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $61.13. Sun Life Financial has a twelve month low of $52.44 and a twelve month high of $69.67. The company has a market capitalization of $36.31 billion, a PE ratio of 14.90 and a beta of 0.88.

Sun Life Financial (NYSE:SLF) (TSE:SLF) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 11th. The financial services provider reported $1.41 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.35 by $0.06. Sun Life Financial had a return on equity of 17.76% and a net margin of 8.48%.The firm had revenue of $973.53 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $973.53 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.68 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts expect that Sun Life Financial will post 5.19 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Sun Life Financial Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, February 25th will be given a dividend of $0.92 per share. This represents a $3.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, February 25th. Sun Life Financial’s payout ratio is presently 60.91%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Sun Life Financial

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC raised 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 acquiring an additional 167 shares in the last quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. bought a new position in Sun Life Financial during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Sittner & Nelson LLC purchased a new stake in Sun Life Financial during the 4th quarter valued at about $33,000. Westside Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in Sun Life Financial by 62.8% during the 2nd quarter. Westside Investment Management Inc. now owns 578 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $38,000 after purchasing an additional 223 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Smartleaf Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in Sun Life Financial by 184.1% in the third quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 588 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 381 shares during the last quarter. 52.26% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.