Sun Life Financial Inc. (TSE:SLF) Given Average Rating of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Shares of Sun Life Financial Inc. (TSE:SLF) (NYSE:SLF) have received a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the ten ratings firms that are presently covering the firm, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and seven have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 1 year target price among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is C$84.18.

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price target on Sun Life Financial from C$78.00 to C$82.00 in a report on Wednesday, November 6th. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their target price on shares of Sun Life Financial from C$90.00 to C$94.00 in a research report on Thursday. TD Securities upped their price target on shares of Sun Life Financial from C$81.00 to C$87.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday. Cormark lifted their price objective on shares of Sun Life Financial from C$82.00 to C$85.00 in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. Finally, Scotiabank upped their target price on Sun Life Financial from C$85.00 to C$96.00 in a research report on Thursday.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Senior Officer Linda Dougherty purchased 5,800 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 15th. The shares were bought at an average price of C$84.83 per share, for a total transaction of C$492,014.00. Also, Director Kevin Strain sold 85,943 shares of Sun Life Financial stock in a transaction on Friday, November 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of C$84.71, for a total transaction of C$7,280,231.53. 0.03% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Sun Life Financial Stock Down 1.2 %

Sun Life Financial stock opened at C$84.88 on Monday. Sun Life Financial has a 1-year low of C$64.38 and a 1-year high of C$86.39. The business has a fifty day moving average price of C$78.56 and a 200-day moving average price of C$72.32. 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. The stock has a market capitalization of C$48.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.08, a PEG ratio of 1.33 and a beta of 0.94.

Sun Life Financial Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 31st will be issued a $0.84 dividend. This represents a $3.36 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.96%. This is a positive change from Sun Life Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.81. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, November 27th. Sun Life Financial’s dividend payout ratio is presently 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.