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Sun Life Financial

SLF
48
Insurance - Diversified · Financial Services
Also trades as: SLF.TO · 0VJA.L
Price
$78.98
+0.72 (+0.93%)
Market Cap
$43.76B
Exchange
New York Stock Exchange
Winston Score
48
Winston is serious
Mixed quality — meaningful strengths and weaknesses.
Data as of Aug 23, 2026 · filings through Jun 30, 2026
How the score breaks down
Quality
Mixed
Growth
Good
Cash Flow
Exceptional
Stability
Strong
Valuation
Good
Dividends
Good

Share count falling — buybacks

2.9% over 4y

The company has reduced its share count over this period, returning value to shareholders through buybacks.

Diluted shares outstanding: 590.0M (2021) → 572.6M (2025)

Winston Score History

The full picture

Sun Life Financial is a Canadian company that sells life insurance, health insurance, and retirement savings products to individuals and businesses. It also runs an asset management division that invests money on behalf of pension funds, institutions, and everyday investors. Sun Life is one of the largest insurance and financial services companies in Canada, with roots going back over 150 years.

Sun Life makes money by collecting insurance premiums, earning investment returns on those premiums, and charging fees to manage client assets. It operates across Canada, the United States, Asia, and the United Kingdom, with Asia representing a growing share of its business. Its large existing customer base and long-term policy contracts create some stickiness, but the company faces real risks from rising claims costs, interest rate swings that affect its investment portfolio, and intense competition in the asset management space.

Growth Profile

When traditional metrics don't capture the full picture, these are the signals growth stock investors use instead.

Revenue Growth

+51.4% YoY

YoY Growth Rate

Strong revenue growth

EPS Growth

+43.3% YoY

YoY Growth Rate

EPS growth accelerating

R&D Spend

C$0/ year

0.0% of revenue

Below sector average (7%)

Research and development spending

Insider Activity

0.3%ownership

Flat

Insider ownership roughly steady over the past year

Cash Position

Cash flow positive

C$210.2B cash & investments

Quarterly Free Cash Flow

↓ Burn rate worsening

Company generates more cash than it spends — no dilution risk from fundraising

Strong grower

Sun Life Financial is growing revenue at 51% year-over-year. The Winston Score penalises unprofitable companies, but revenue at this pace tells a different story — this is a company still in "build mode."

The Winston Score above measures business quality today. Growth stocks often score lower because they invest in the future rather than maximising current profits. These metrics show what matters most for evaluating that future.

Score breakdown

Every number that matters to educated investors.

Each metric is explained in plain language so you know exactly what you're looking at. Start your free trial now.

Quality

Profit per sale
Gross Margin
10.7%
Thin — 10.7% gross margin
Profit after running costs
Operating Margin
9.8%
Modest — 9.8% operating margin
Return on the money invested
ROCE
13.4%
Good — 13.4% return on capital

ROIC between 5% and 15%. They earn 5 to 15 cents back per year on every dollar invested.

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Growth

Sales growth
Sales YoY
+12.4%
Fast-growing sales (+12.4% YoY)
Profit growth
EPS YoY
+4.8%
Modest earnings growth (+4.8% YoY)

Single-digit earnings growth — steady but not exciting.

How steady the profit is
EPS Consistency
5/8 quarters
Mixed — about half the quarters showed growth

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Cash Flow

Profit that turns into cash
Cash Conversion
300%
Turns 300% of profit into real cash
Spare cash per sale
FCF Margin
24.1%
Converts sales into free cash efficiently (24.1%)

Free cash flow margin above 20%. Out of every $100 in sales, more than $20 is real cash they keep.

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Stability

What it owes vs what it owns
Debt / Equity
0.34
Conservative — low debt load (0.34)
Covers its interest
Interest Cover
8.54x
Comfortably covers interest (8.5x)

Interest coverage above 8. Profits cover interest many times over.

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Valuation

Price vs profit
P/E Ratio (TTM)
13.4x
Attractive valuation — P/E 13.4

P/E in the normal range. Price is roughly $15 for every $1 of yearly profit.

Cheaper or dearer next year
P/E vs Forward
-8.3
SLOWING
Earnings expected to fall — forward P/E higher than today

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Dividends

Dividend
Dividend Yield
3.16%
Moderate income — 3.16% yield

Standard yield zone for stable dividend payers. A meaningful piece of total return.

Dividend record
Dividend Growth
+9.9%
Dividend growing modestly (9.9% YoY)

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