Sun Life Financial (NYSE:SLF) Earns “Sector Perform” Rating from Royal Bank Of Canada

Sun Life Financial (NYSE:SLF) (TSE:SLF)‘s stock had its “sector perform” rating reissued by analysts at Royal Bank Of Canada in a research report issued on Monday,Benzinga reports. They currently have a $84.00 price target on the financial services provider’s stock. Royal Bank Of Canada’s price objective suggests a potential upside of 46.05% from the company’s previous close.

SLF has been the topic of several other reports. National Bank Financial cut shares of Sun Life Financial from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 7th. Argus raised shares of Sun Life Financial to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, September 4th. Morgan Stanley set a $89.00 price objective on shares of Sun Life Financial in a research report on Tuesday, October 7th. Barclays reiterated an “underweight” rating on shares of Sun Life Financial in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Sun Life Financial in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have issued a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $86.50.

Sun Life Financial Stock Down 1.8%

SLF traded down $1.03 during trading on Monday, reaching $57.52. 137,579 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 636,560. Sun Life Financial has a 12-month low of $52.44 and a 12-month high of $66.81. The company’s 50-day moving average is $60.18 and its two-hundred day moving average is $61.36. The company has a market cap of $32.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.24, a P/E/G ratio of 1.67 and a beta of 0.90.

Sun Life Financial (NYSE:SLF) (TSE:SLF) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 5th. The financial services provider reported $1.35 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.30 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $944.53 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $944.53 million. Sun Life Financial had a net margin of 7.59% and a return on equity of 17.21%. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.33 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that Sun Life Financial will post 5.19 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Sun Life Financial

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Brighton Jones LLC bought a new position in shares of Sun Life Financial during the fourth quarter valued at about $244,000. Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its holdings in Sun Life Financial by 12.3% during the 1st quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 26,533 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,518,000 after purchasing an additional 2,900 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its position in Sun Life Financial by 5.7% during the 1st quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 591,310 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $33,858,000 after purchasing an additional 32,048 shares during the last quarter. Cerity Partners LLC lifted its holdings in Sun Life Financial by 4.3% in the 1st quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 24,889 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,425,000 after buying an additional 1,022 shares during the period. Finally, Ballentine Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Sun Life Financial in the 1st quarter worth approximately $263,000. Institutional investors own 52.26% of the company’s stock.

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.