Sun Life: A Top Dividend Stock for Income Investors

Sun Life (SLF) is a great dividend stock with a yield of 4.49% and annualized dividend of $2.55, up 6.3% from last year. The company has increased its dividend 5 times in the last 5 years, with an average annual increase of 8.94%. SLF is expecting earnings to expand in 2025, with a year-over-year growth rate of 9.88%. The company's payout ratio is 51%, and it has a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).

Sun Life Financial Inc. (SLF) has announced an increase in its quarterly dividend, reflecting the company's strong financial performance and commitment to shareholder returns. The new dividend of $0.64 per share represents a 1.0% increase from the previous quarterly dividend of $0.63, with an annualized dividend yield of 4.5% [1].

The company's stock has experienced a decline of 7.9% over the past year, trading at $56.65 with an average daily volume of 685,726 shares. Despite the stock performance, Sun Life Financial reported earnings per share (EPS) of $1.29 for the last quarter, meeting analyst estimates. However, revenue of $6.65 billion fell short of expectations of $7.34 billion [1].

Sun Life Financial has a payout ratio of 45.2%, indicating that its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Analysts expect the company to earn $5.67 per share next year, which would maintain a payout ratio of 45.1% [1].

The company's recent earnings report highlights its resilience amid U.S. Medicaid challenges and leveraging Asian growth and wealth management resilience. Asian operations drove a 15% net income growth, while wealth management reported $300 million in net income despite market volatility. The company's strong liquidity coverage ratio (LICAT) of 151% and $400 million in share repurchases underscore its capital discipline [2].

Looking ahead, Sun Life Financial expects earnings to expand in 2025, with a year-over-year growth rate of 9.88%. The company's Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy) further supports its strong outlook [1].

References:
[1] https://www.marketbeat.com/instant-alerts/sun-life-financial-inc-nyseslf-increases-dividend-to-064-per-share-2025-08-08/
[2] https://www.ainvest.com/news/sun-life-financial-q2-2025-earnings-navigating-medicaid-uncertainty-leveraging-asian-growth-wealth-management-resilience-2508/