Desjardins Has Pessimistic View of SLF FY2024 Earnings

Sun Life Financial Inc. (NYSE:SLF) (TSE:SLF) – Equities researchers at Desjardins cut their FY2024 earnings estimates for Sun Life Financial in a research note issued to investors on Tuesday, November 5th. Desjardins analyst D. Young now expects that the financial services provider will earn $4.86 per share for the year, down from their previous estimate of $4.94. The consensus estimate for Sun Life Financial’s current full-year earnings is $4.87 per share.

Sun Life Financial (NYSE:SLF) (TSE:SLF) last released its earnings results on Monday, August 12th. The financial services provider reported $1.25 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.18 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $6.52 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.72 billion. Sun Life Financial had a return on equity of 17.44% and a net margin of 7.32%.

Several other analysts have also issued reports on the stock. Barclays assumed coverage on shares of Sun Life Financial in a research report on Thursday, September 5th. They set an “equal weight” rating for the company. StockNews.com upgraded Sun Life Financial from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday.

Sun Life Financial Stock Performance

SLF stock opened at $59.24 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $37.33 billion, a PE ratio of 13.19, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.51 and a beta of 1.01. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $56.82 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $52.59. Sun Life Financial has a one year low of $46.41 and a one year high of $59.81.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Sun Life Financial

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of SLF. Csenge Advisory Group purchased a new position in shares of Sun Life Financial during the first quarter valued at approximately $232,000. Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management bought a new position in shares of Sun Life Financial in the 1st quarter worth about $315,000. Forsta AP Fonden lifted its position in Sun Life Financial by 6.5% during the 1st quarter. Forsta AP Fonden now owns 301,700 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $16,478,000 after acquiring an additional 18,500 shares during the period. Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC bought a new position in shares of Sun Life Financial during the first quarter valued at approximately $7,865,000. Finally, Russell Investments Group Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of Sun Life Financial by 3.4% during the first quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 660,009 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $36,040,000 after purchasing an additional 21,773 shares during the last quarter. 52.26% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Sun Life Financial Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Investors of record on Wednesday, November 27th will be issued a dividend of $0.621 per share. This is a positive change from Sun Life Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.59. This represents a $2.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.19%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, November 27th. Sun Life Financial’s dividend payout ratio is currently 52.34%.

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.