Sun Life Financial (TSE:SLF) Reaches New 1-Year High – Here’s What Happened

Sun Life Financial Inc. (TSE:SLF) (NYSE:SLF)’s stock price reached a new 52-week high on Monday . The stock traded as high as C$86.83 and last traded at C$86.59, with a volume of 164822 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at C$86.17.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have commented on SLF. National Bankshares boosted their target price on Sun Life Financial from C$72.00 to C$73.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 13th. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price objective on shares of Sun Life Financial from C$90.00 to C$94.00 in a research report on Thursday, November 14th. CIBC increased their price objective on shares of Sun Life Financial from C$90.00 to C$96.00 in a research note on Wednesday, November 13th. Cormark boosted their target price on shares of Sun Life Financial from C$82.00 to C$85.00 in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. Finally, Scotiabank increased their price target on Sun Life Financial from C$85.00 to C$96.00 in a research note on Thursday, November 14th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of C$84.18.

Sun Life Financial Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 53.77, a quick ratio of 84,866.00 and a current ratio of 65.29. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is C$80.42 and its 200 day moving average price is C$73.23. The company has a market capitalization of C$49.88 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.32, a price-to-earnings-growth 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 Wednesday, November 27th will be issued a dividend of $0.84 per share. This is an increase from Sun Life Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.81. This represents a $3.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.88%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, November 27th. Sun Life Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 61.36%.

Insider Transactions at Sun Life Financial

In related news, Director Kevin Strain sold 85,943 shares of the 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. Also, Senior Officer Linda Dougherty purchased 5,800 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 15th. The stock was bought at an average cost of C$84.83 per share, with a total value of C$492,014.00. Corporate insiders own 0.03% 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.