Sun Life Financial Target of Unusually Large Options Trading (NYSE:SLF)

08 Apr 2026, 14:32 by Mitch Edgeman · The Markets Daily

Sun Life Financial Inc. (NYSE:SLF – Get Free Report) (TSE:SLF) was the target of unusually large options trading on Wednesday. Stock investors bought 8,206 call options on the stock. This is an increase of approximately 16,996% compared to the average daily volume of 48 call options.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

SLF has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Barclays reaffirmed an “underweight” rating on shares of Sun Life Financial in a research report on Thursday, January 8th. Scotiabank reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating on shares of Sun Life Financial in a research report on Thursday, February 5th. BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Sun Life Financial in a research report on Friday, February 13th. Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce reaffirmed a “neutral” rating on shares of Sun Life Financial in a research report on Thursday, January 8th. Finally, TD Securities reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Sun Life Financial in a research report on Thursday, February 12th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have issued a Buy rating, five have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Sun Life Financial has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $86.50.

Read Our Latest Research Report on SLF

Sun Life Financial Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:SLF traded up $1.44 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $65.33. 108,000 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 680,417. Sun Life Financial has a 52-week low of $52.62 and a 52-week high of $69.67. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $64.38 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $62.08. The company has a market capitalization of $36.18 billion, a PE ratio of 14.85 and a beta of 0.87.

Sun Life Financial (NYSE:SLF – Get Free Report) (TSE:SLF) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 11th. The financial services provider reported $1.41 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.35 by $0.06. Sun Life Financial had a return on equity of 17.76% and a net margin of 8.48%.The business had revenue of $973.53 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $973.53 million. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.68 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Sun Life Financial will post 5.19 EPS for the current year.

Sun Life Financial Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 25th were issued a dividend of $0.92 per share. This represents a $3.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.6%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, February 25th. Sun Life Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 61.36%.

Institutional Trading of Sun Life Financial

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of SLF. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC raised its holdings in Sun Life Financial by 68.4% during the fourth quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 411 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 167 shares in the last quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. bought a new position in Sun Life Financial during the fourth quarter valued at about $30,000. Sittner & Nelson LLC bought a new position in Sun Life Financial during the fourth quarter valued at about $33,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in Sun Life Financial by 184.1% during the third quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 588 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $35,000 after buying an additional 381 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Westside Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in Sun Life Financial by 38.6% during the third quarter. Westside Investment Management Inc. now owns 801 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $48,000 after buying an additional 223 shares in the last quarter. 52.26% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Sun Life Financial

(Get Free Report)

Sun Life Financial Inc, founded in 1865 and headquartered in Toronto, Ontario, is an international financial services organization that provides a range of insurance, wealth management and asset management solutions. The company serves individual and institutional clients, offering products designed to protect against life and health risks, help clients save for retirement, and manage investments on behalf of customers and third parties.