Sun Life Financial Inc. to Issue Quarterly Dividend of $0.59 (NYSE:SLF)

Sun Life Financial Inc. (NYSE:SLF - Get Free Report) TSE: SLF declared a quarterly dividend on Thursday, February 13th,Wall Street Journal reports. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, February 26th will be paid a dividend of 0.5876 per share by the financial services provider on Monday, March 31st. This represents a $2.35 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.26%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, February 26th.

Sun Life Financial has increased its dividend by an average of 11.9% per year over the last three years. Sun Life Financial has a dividend payout ratio of 41.0% meaning its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Research analysts expect Sun Life Financial to earn $5.22 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $2.34 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 44.8%.

Sun Life Financial Stock Down 0.2 %

Shares of Sun Life Financial stock traded down $0.11 on Monday, reaching $55.17. The company's stock had a trading volume of 858,344 shares, compared to its average volume of 554,788. The company has a market capitalization of $34.65 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.29, a PEG ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 1.03. Sun Life Financial has a 52-week low of $46.41 and a 52-week high of $62.85. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $58.78 and a 200-day moving average price of $57.23.

Sun Life Financial (NYSE:SLF - Get Free Report) TSE: SLF last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 12th. The financial services provider reported $1.20 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.90 by $0.30. Sun Life Financial had a return on equity of 17.44% and a net margin of 7.32%. Sell-side analysts forecast that Sun Life Financial will post 4.76 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently commented on SLF shares. StockNews.com cut Sun Life Financial from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. National Bank Financial upgraded Sun Life Financial from a "sector perform" rating to an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 15th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, two have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy".

About Sun Life Financial

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.