Wall Street brokerages expect Sun Life Financial Inc. (NYSE: SLF) (TSE: SLF) to report earnings per share (EPS) of $ 1.19 for the current fiscal quarter, according to Zacks Investment Research. Zero analysts have released earnings estimates for Sun Life Financial, with estimates ranging from $ 1.18 to $ 1.20. Sun Life Financial posted earnings of $ 1.08 per share for the same quarter last year, which would indicate a positive year-over-year growth rate of 10.2%. The company is expected to report its next results after the market closes on Wednesday, November 3.

According to Zacks, analysts expect Sun Life Financial to report annual earnings of $ 4.70 per share for the current year, with EPS estimates ranging from $ 4.54 to $ 4.82. For the next fiscal year, analysts predict the company will post earnings of $ 5.10 per share, with EPS estimates ranging from $ 4.81 to $ 5.38. Zacks Investment Research earnings per share averages are an average based on a survey of seller-side research companies that track Sun Life Financial.

Sun Life Financial (NYSE: SLF) (TSE: SLF) last reported its results on Wednesday, August 4. The financial services provider reported earnings per share of $ 1.22 for the quarter, beating Thomson Reuters consensus estimate of $ 1.16 by $ 0.06. Sun Life Financial had a net margin of 9.51% and a return on equity of 14.05%. The company posted revenue of $ 10.31 billion for the quarter.

A number of analysts have recently published reports on the company. Royal Bank of Canada increased its target price on Sun Life Financial from $ 69 to $ 71.00 and assigned the stock a “sector performance” rating in a research note on Friday August 6. Canaccord Genuity reissued a “buy” note and issued a target price of C $ 50.96 (vs. C $ 73.00) for shares of Sun Life Financial in a research note on Monday, July 26. TD Securities lowered its target price on Sun Life Financial from C $ 75.00 to C $ 73.00 and established a “buy” rating for the company in a report released Thursday, August 5. Finally, Barclays reissued a “sell” rating and set a target price of C $ 64.00 for Sun Life Financial shares in a report released on Thursday, September 2. One investment analyst gave the stock a sell rating, three assigned a conservation rating, and seven gave the company a buy rating. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Sun Life Financial currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $ 66.90.

NYSE: SLF shares traded up $ 0.01 at midday on Friday, reaching $ 51.46. The stock had a trade volume of 625,044 shares, compared to an average volume of 585,517. The company has a market capitalization of $ 30.14 billion, a PE ratio of 11.62, a price / earnings-growth ratio. of 1.22 and a beta of 1.04. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $ 51.64 and a two-hundred-day simple moving average of $ 52.02. Sun Life Financial has a 12-month low of $ 38.53 and a 12-month high of $ 55.07.

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, September 29. Shareholders of record on Wednesday August 25 received a dividend of $ 0.4386. This represents an annualized dividend of $ 1.75 and a return of 3.41%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, August 24. Sun Life Financial’s dividend payout ratio (PDR) is currently 42.93%.

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently changed their holdings in the company. Rempart Asset Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Sun Life Financial by 4.4% during the third quarter. Rempart Asset Management Inc. now owns 20,162 shares of the financial services provider valued at $ 1,038,000 after purchasing an additional 850 shares during the period. Parametric Portfolio Associates LLC increased its stake in Sun Life Financial by 4.6% in the second quarter. Parametric Portfolio Associates LLC now owns 387,209 shares of the financial services provider valued at $ 19,957,000 after purchasing an additional 17,012 shares during the period. Advisory Resource Group purchased a new position in Sun Life Financial in the second quarter valued at $ 233,000. Wells Fargo & Company MN increased its stake in shares of Sun Life Financial by 361.5% during the second quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 265,736 shares of the financial services provider valued at $ 13,706,000 after acquiring an additional 208,161 shares during the period. Finally, Eubel Brady & Suttman Asset Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Sun Life Financial during the second quarter valued at $ 35,000. 45.95% of the shares are currently held by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Sun Life Financial Company Profile

Sun Life Financial, Inc. operates as a holding company. The company engages in the provision of financial services. It operates in the following segments: Sun Life Financial Canada, Sun Life Financial United States, Sun Life Financial Asset Management, Sun Life Financial Asia and Corporates. The Sun Life Financial Canada segment provides individual insurance and wealth management, group insurance and retirement services.

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