Brokerages Set Sun Life Financial Inc. (NYSE:SLF) PT at $86.50

Sun Life Financial Inc. (NYSE:SLF) (TSE:SLF) has received a consensus recommendation of “Hold” from the twelve research firms that are currently covering the stock, Marketbeat Ratings reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, four have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. The average 12-month price objective among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $86.50.

Several brokerages have commented on SLF. TD Securities raised Sun Life Financial from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 7th. National Bankshares reiterated a “sector perform” rating on shares of Sun Life Financial in a research report on Thursday, November 6th. Evercore ISI reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Sun Life Financial in a report on Thursday, October 9th. National Bank Financial lowered shares of Sun Life Financial from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 7th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating and set a $84.00 target price on shares of Sun Life Financial in a research note on Monday, November 10th.

Sun Life Financial Price Performance

SLF stock traded up $0.46 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $59.12. 264,321 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 633,358. Sun Life Financial has a 1-year low of $52.44 and a 1-year high of $66.81. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $60.23 and its 200-day simple moving average is $61.24. The firm has a market cap of $32.94 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.63, a PEG ratio of 1.67 and a beta of 0.90.

Sun Life Financial (NYSE:SLF) (TSE:SLF) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, November 5th. The financial services provider reported $1.35 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.30 by $0.05. Sun Life Financial had a net margin of 7.59% and a return on equity of 17.21%. The business had revenue of $944.53 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $944.53 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $2.33 EPS. On average, research analysts predict that Sun Life Financial will post 5.19 earnings per share for the current year.

Sun Life Financial Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, December 31st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, November 26th will be given a $0.92 dividend. This represents a $3.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.2%. This is a boost from Sun Life Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.64. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, November 26th. Sun Life Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 69.41%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in SLF. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in Sun Life Financial by 3.4% during the second quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 25,422,211 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,691,568,000 after acquiring an additional 827,119 shares during the last quarter. TD Asset Management Inc lifted its position in shares of Sun Life Financial by 2.4% during the 1st quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 16,100,340 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $921,330,000 after purchasing an additional 374,682 shares during the last quarter. 1832 Asset Management L.P. grew its stake in shares of Sun Life Financial by 8.9% during the first quarter. 1832 Asset Management L.P. now owns 10,338,250 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $591,968,000 after purchasing an additional 846,735 shares in the last quarter. Federation des caisses Desjardins du Quebec increased its holdings in Sun Life Financial by 5.2% in the first quarter. Federation des caisses Desjardins du Quebec now owns 6,748,255 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $385,740,000 after buying an additional 335,054 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bank of Nova Scotia raised its stake in Sun Life Financial by 6.5% in the second quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia now owns 6,157,205 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $409,576,000 after buying an additional 377,204 shares in the last quarter. 52.26% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Sun Life Financial Company Profile

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.