Sun Life Financial (NYSE:SLF) Rating Increased to Buy at StockNews.com

Sun Life Financial (NYSE:SLF) (TSE:SLF) was upgraded by investment analysts at StockNews.com from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report issued on Wednesday.

Separately, Barclays began coverage on Sun Life Financial in a research report on Thursday, September 5th. They set an “equal weight” rating on the stock.

Sun Life Financial Stock Performance

NYSE SLF traded up $1.13 on Wednesday, reaching $58.90. 1,195,531 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 656,957. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $56.62 and a 200-day moving average price of $52.48. The company has a market cap of $37.11 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.12, a PEG ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 1.01. Sun Life Financial has a 12 month low of $46.41 and a 12 month high of $59.03.

Sun Life Financial (NYSE:SLF) (TSE:SLF) last issued its earnings results on Monday, August 12th. The financial services provider reported $1.25 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.18 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $6.52 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.72 billion. Sun Life Financial had a return on equity of 17.68% and a net margin of 7.32%. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Sun Life Financial will post 4.86 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of Sun Life Financial

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Sun Life Financial by 1.6% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 23,241,910 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,268,543,000 after buying an additional 359,028 shares during the last quarter. TD Asset Management Inc boosted its stake in shares of Sun Life Financial by 2.8% in the first quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 16,107,748 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $879,751,000 after buying an additional 442,197 shares during the last quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp boosted its stake in shares of Sun Life Financial by 2.9% in the second quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 14,703,533 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $721,042,000 after buying an additional 407,913 shares during the last quarter. 1832 Asset Management L.P. raised its holdings in Sun Life Financial by 5.1% in the 2nd quarter. 1832 Asset Management L.P. now owns 10,216,206 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $500,492,000 after purchasing an additional 499,009 shares during the period. Finally, The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company raised its holdings in Sun Life Financial by 13.9% in the 2nd quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 8,601,980 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $421,167,000 after purchasing an additional 1,049,244 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other 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.