Seek Returns

L vs. SLF: Loews vs. Sun Life Financial Stock Comparison

How do Loews (L) and Sun Life Financial (SLF) stack up? This page sets them side by side across company profile, performance and risk, profitability, growth, financial strength, dividends, and valuation, with selected fundamentals also measured against each stock's industry-group peers.

Company Profile

Loews (L) and Sun Life Financial (SLF) both belong to the Insurance industry, though L is classified under Property & Casualty Insurance while SLF falls under Life & Health Insurance.

Company profile comparison for Loews (L) and Sun Life Financial (SLF)
Profile ItemLSLF
NameLoews Corp.Sun Life Financial Inc.
Country/RegionUnited StatesCanada
GICS SectorFinancialsFinancials
GICS Industry GroupInsuranceInsurance
GICS IndustryInsuranceInsurance
GICS Sub-IndustryProperty & Casualty InsuranceLife & Health Insurance
Market Capitalization22.19 billion USD39.73 billion USD
CurrencyUSDUSD
ExchangeNYSENYSE
Listing DateMarch 17, 1980March 23, 2000
Security TypeCommon StockCommon Stock

Price Performance

Cumulative Growth

L
SLF
GSPC
Loading price history…
Loews (L) vs. Sun Life Financial (SLF), with S&P 500 (GSPC) for reference: Growth of a $10,000 investment over the past five years. Adjusted for dividends and splits.

Trailing Returns

Loading price history…
Trailing total returns for Loews (L) and Sun Life Financial (SLF). Returns over one year are annualized.

Calendar-Year Returns

Loading price history…
Calendar-year total returns for Loews (L) and Sun Life Financial (SLF). Each bar is that year's total return, measured year-end to year-end.

Performance Metrics

Price performance metrics for Loews (L) and Sun Life Financial (SLF)
MetricLSLF
Total Return (1Y)7.24%30.02%
Total Return (3Y, Annualized)19.27%20.05%
Total Return (5Y, Annualized)14.13%9.37%

Risk Profile

Drawdown History

L
SLF
GSPC
Loading price history…
Loews (L) vs. Sun Life Financial (SLF), with S&P 500 (GSPC) for reference: Drawdown from the running peak over the past five years. Each line shows the decline from its prior peak; 0% marks a new high.

Return Distribution

Loading price history…
Distribution of monthly total returns for Loews (L) and Sun Life Financial (SLF). Each bar is the share of months whose return fell in that 5% bucket.

Risk Metrics

Risk profile metrics for Loews (L) and Sun Life Financial (SLF)
MetricLSLF
Volatility (1Y, Annualized)16.13%21.39%
Beta (5Y)0.490.88
Max Drawdown (5Y)-26.11%-30.77%
Avg. Volume (3M)805.54K666.75K

Risk-Adjusted Performance

Risk-Return Positioning

Loading chart…
L and SLF are plotted by 1-year volatility (risk) and 1-year return. The dashed Capital Allocation Line runs from the risk-free rate through the shared industry median.

Risk-Adjusted Metrics

Risk-adjusted metrics for Loews (L) and Sun Life Financial (SLF)
MetricLSLF
Sharpe Ratio (1Y)0.181.20
Sortino Ratio (1Y)0.261.61

Profitability

ROE (TTM)

Sun Life Financial (SLF) at 11.55% is around its peer norm for ROE, while Loews (L) at 8.21% drops into the bottom quartile, signaling weaker returns on shareholders’ equity.

L

Insurance industry group

8.21%

Max
41.68%
Q3
22.04%
Median
14.81%
Q1
8.79%
L
8.21%
Min
-10.66%

SLF

Insurance industry group

11.55%

Max
41.68%
Q3
22.04%
Median
14.81%
SLF
11.55%
Q1
8.79%
Min
-10.66%
Loading chart…
Loews (L) vs. Sun Life Financial (SLF): A comparison of their ROE against the Insurance industry group benchmark.

Net Margin (TTM)

Both Loews (L) at 7.93% and Sun Life Financial (SLF) at 8.63% keep about the typical share of revenue as profit for their industries — neither bottom line stands out from peers.

L

Insurance industry group

7.93%

Max
29.92%
Q3
17.03%
Median
10.97%
L
7.93%
Q1
6.21%
Min
-4.68%

SLF

Insurance industry group

8.63%

Max
29.92%
Q3
17.03%
Median
10.97%
SLF
8.63%
Q1
6.21%
Min
-4.68%
Loading chart…
Loews (L) vs. Sun Life Financial (SLF): A comparison of their net margin against the Insurance industry group benchmark.

Operating Margin (TTM)

Neither side reports a meaningful operating margin: for Loews (L) in Insurance and Sun Life Financial (SLF) in Insurance, funding costs are part of the core business, so net margin and ROE are the cleaner profitability reads.

Profitability Metrics

Profitability metrics for Loews (L) and Sun Life Financial (SLF)
MetricLSLF
ROE (TTM)8.21%11.55%
ROA (TTM)1.71%0.74%
Net Margin (TTM)7.93%8.63%
Operating Margin (TTM)----
Gross Margin (TTM)----

Growth

Revenue Growth

Both Loews (L) at 5.44% and Sun Life Financial (SLF) at 11.50% land near their industries' usual revenue growth ranges, so top-line momentum looks broadly in line with peers on both sides.

Loading chart…
Loews (L) vs. Sun Life Financial (SLF): A comparison of their Revenue Growth across different time periods.

EPS Growth

Both Loews (L) at 24.34% and Sun Life Financial (SLF) at 16.92% land near their industries' usual EPS growth ranges, so bottom-line momentum looks broadly in line with peers on both sides.

Loading chart…
Loews (L) vs. Sun Life Financial (SLF): A comparison of their EPS Growth across different time periods.

Growth Metrics

Growth metrics for Loews (L) and Sun Life Financial (SLF)
MetricLSLF
Revenue Growth (YoY)5.44%11.50%
Revenue Growth (3Y CAGR)8.96%123.82%
EPS Growth (YoY)24.34%16.92%
EPS Growth (3Y CAGR)33.10%5.68%

Financial Strength

Current Ratio (MRQ)

current ratio doesn’t apply on either side: Loews (L) in Insurance and Sun Life Financial (SLF) in Insurance both report balance sheets without a current/non-current split, so their short-term liquidity is better judged through regulatory and funding measures.

Debt / Equity (MRQ)

debt-to-equity ratio is set aside for both: Loews (L) in Insurance and Sun Life Financial (SLF) in Insurance run businesses where balance-sheet leverage is part of the model, so capital-adequacy and funding measures are the better gauges of balance-sheet risk.

Financial Strength Metrics

Financial strength metrics for Loews (L) and Sun Life Financial (SLF)
MetricLSLF
Current Ratio (MRQ)----
Debt / Equity (MRQ)----
Net Debt / EBITDA----

Dividends

Dividend Yield (TTM)

Sun Life Financial (SLF) at 5.12% delivers top-quartile income for its industry, while Loews (L) at 0.23% pays a more typical yield — both are credible income propositions, SLF the richer one.

L

Insurance industry group

0.23%

Max
5.12%
Q3
2.15%
Median
0.98%
L
0.23%
Q1
0.00%
Min
0.00%

SLF

Insurance industry group

5.12%

SLF
5.12%
Max
5.12%
Q3
2.15%
Median
0.98%
Q1
0.00%
Min
0.00%
Loading chart…
Loews (L) vs. Sun Life Financial (SLF): A comparison of their dividend yield against the Insurance industry group benchmark.

Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)

Loews (L) at 3.46% pays out a band-typical share of earnings, while Sun Life Financial (SLF) at 70.41% distributes more than its industry norm — less retained, thinner cover.

L

Insurance industry group

3.46%

Max
76.67%
Q3
35.18%
Median
14.74%
L
3.46%
Q1
0.00%
Min
0.00%

SLF

Insurance industry group

70.41%

Max
76.67%
SLF
70.41%
Q3
35.18%
Median
14.74%
Q1
0.00%
Min
0.00%
Loading chart…
Loews (L) vs. Sun Life Financial (SLF): A comparison of their payout ratio against the Insurance industry group benchmark.

Dividend Metrics

Dividend metrics for Loews (L) and Sun Life Financial (SLF)
MetricLSLF
Dividend Yield (TTM)0.23%5.12%
Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)3.46%70.41%

Valuation

P/E Ratio (TTM)

Both Loews (L) at 15.17 and Sun Life Financial (SLF) at 18.58 land around their industries’ usual P/E ratio levels — neither is getting a clear earnings-multiple discount or premium versus peers.

L

Insurance industry group

15.17

Max
28.37
Q3
18.75
L
15.17
Median
12.23
Q1
9.08
Min
2.32

SLF

Insurance industry group

18.58

Max
28.37
Q3
18.75
SLF
18.58
Median
12.23
Q1
9.08
Min
2.32
Loading chart…
Loews (L) vs. Sun Life Financial (SLF): A comparison of their P/E ratio against the Insurance industry group benchmark.

P/S Ratio (TTM)

On P/S ratio, both Loews (L) at 1.18 and Sun Life Financial (SLF) at 1.12 are priced roughly in line with their industries — neither looks cheap nor rich on a sales basis.

L

Insurance industry group

1.18

Max
4.03
Q3
2.25
Median
1.23
L
1.18
Q1
0.85
Min
0.07

SLF

Insurance industry group

1.12

Max
4.03
Q3
2.25
Median
1.23
SLF
1.12
Q1
0.85
Min
0.07
Loading chart…
Loews (L) vs. Sun Life Financial (SLF): A comparison of their P/S ratio against the Insurance industry group benchmark.

P/B Ratio (MRQ)

Loews (L) at 1.22 sits in the lower P/B ratio quartile against book while Sun Life Financial (SLF) at 2.26 is valued near its industry’s middle — L is cheaper on assets, though weigh it against ROE and asset quality.

L

Insurance industry group

1.22

Max
5.07
Q3
2.79
Median
1.76
Q1
1.23
L
1.22
Min
0.30

SLF

Insurance industry group

2.26

Max
5.07
Q3
2.79
SLF
2.26
Median
1.76
Q1
1.23
Min
0.30
Loading chart…
Loews (L) vs. Sun Life Financial (SLF): A comparison of their P/B ratio against the Insurance industry group benchmark.

Valuation Metrics

Valuation metrics for Loews (L) and Sun Life Financial (SLF)
MetricLSLF
P/E Ratio (TTM)15.1718.58
P/S Ratio (TTM)1.181.12
P/B Ratio (MRQ)1.222.26
Free Cash Flow Yield (TTM)----