Sun Life Earnings: All Around Strong Performance Sets The Company Well for the Upcoming Year

No-moat-rated Sun Life Financial reported a strong set of numbers with underlying net income of CAD 983 million or CAD 1.68 per share in the fourth quarter, up 10% versus CAD 892 million or CAD 1.52 per share in the fourth quarter of the previous year. The fourth-quarter results equated to an annualized underlying return on equity of 18.4%, which is largely in line with management’s medium-term guidance of 18%. The company paid a quarterly dividend of CAD 0.78 per share in the fourth quarter of 2023, which represents a 4.4% dividend yield as per the current stock price. We are maintaining our CAD 63 fair value estimate for Sun Life after incorporating the fourth-quarter results.