Sun Life Financial (NYSE:SLF) Price Target Raised to $119.00

Sun Life Financial (NYSE:SLF) (TSE:SLF) had its price target boosted by Royal Bank Of Canada from $98.00 to $119.00 in a research report released on Monday, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Royal Bank Of Canada currently has a sector perform rating on the financial services provider’s stock.

Other analysts also recently issued reports about the stock. TD Securities restated a “buy” rating on shares of Sun Life Financial in a research report on Friday, August 7th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Sun Life Financial from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Sunday, July 26th. National Bank Financial raised shares of Sun Life Financial from a “sector perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, April 24th. Scotiabank reiterated a “sector perform” rating on shares of Sun Life Financial in a research report on Wednesday, July 15th. Finally, Evercore cut Sun Life Financial from an “outperform” rating to an “in-line” rating in a report on Monday, July 13th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have assigned a Buy rating, five have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Sun Life Financial currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $96.33.

Sun Life Financial Price Performance

Sun Life Financial stock opened at $80.30 on Monday. Sun Life Financial has a one year low of $57.22 and a one year high of $84.38. The business’s fifty day moving average is $79.43 and its 200 day moving average is $71.41. The stock has a market capitalization of $44.75 billion, a PE ratio of 18.77 and a beta of 0.88.

Sun Life Financial (NYSE:SLF) (TSE:SLF) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 6th. The financial services provider reported $1.46 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.39 by $0.07. Sun Life Financial had a net margin of 7.66% and a return on equity of 17.99%. The firm had revenue of $10.10 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $994.33 million. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Sun Life Financial will post 5.72 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Sun Life Financial Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 29th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, August 26th will be issued a dividend of $0.96 per share. This represents a $3.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.8%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, August 26th. Sun Life Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 66.12%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Sun Life Financial

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Bank of Nova Scotia purchased a new position in Sun Life Financial during the 2nd quarter worth $544,052,000. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Sun Life Financial in the 4th quarter worth approximately $398,037,000. Morgan Stanley grew its position in Sun Life Financial by 86.6% during the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 3,952,646 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $246,645,000 after purchasing an additional 1,834,772 shares during the last quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund increased its stake in Sun Life Financial by 2,187.4% during the 1st quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund now owns 1,601,200 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $100,276,000 after purchasing an additional 1,531,200 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Alberta Investment Management Corp purchased a new stake in shares of Sun Life Financial during the second quarter valued at $99,930,000. Institutional investors own 52.26% of the company’s stock.

Sun Life Financial Company Profile

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.