Head to Head Survey: Chubb (NYSE:CB) vs. Sun Life Financial (NYSE:SLF)

Chubb (NYSE:CB) and Sun Life Financial (NYSE:SLF) are both large-cap finance companies, but which is the superior business? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their profitability, dividends, risk, analyst recommendations, institutional ownership, valuation and earnings.

Dividends

Chubb pays an annual dividend of $4.08 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.2%. Sun Life Financial pays an annual dividend of $2.74 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.5%. Chubb pays out 14.4% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Sun Life Financial pays out 64.0% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Both companies have healthy payout ratios and should be able to cover their dividend payments with earnings for the next several years. Chubb has raised its dividend for 31 consecutive years and Sun Life Financial has raised its dividend for 11 consecutive years.

Risk and Volatility

Chubb has a beta of 0.39, suggesting that its stock price is 61% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Sun Life Financial has a beta of 0.88, suggesting that its stock price is 12% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares Chubb and Sun Life Financial”s gross revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Chubb	$59.40 billion	2.21	$10.31 billion	$28.27	12.01
Sun Life Financial	$29.99 billion	1.46	$2.68 billion	$4.28	18.36

Chubb has higher revenue and earnings than Sun Life Financial. Chubb is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Sun Life Financial, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of current recommendations and price targets for Chubb and Sun Life Financial, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Chubb	1	12	7	2	2.45
Sun Life Financial	1	5	5	1	2.50

Chubb currently has a consensus price target of $361.00, suggesting a potential upside of 6.30%. Sun Life Financial has a consensus price target of $96.33, suggesting a potential upside of 22.58%. Given Sun Life Financial’s stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, analysts clearly believe Sun Life Financial is more favorable than Chubb.

Profitability

This table compares Chubb and Sun Life Financial’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Chubb	18.10%	14.47%	4.19%
Sun Life Financial	7.66%	17.96%	1.08%

Institutional and Insider Ownership

83.8% of Chubb shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 52.3% of Sun Life Financial shares are held by institutional investors. 0.4% of Chubb shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, hedge funds and large money managers believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Summary

Chubb beats Sun Life Financial on 12 of the 18 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Chubb

Chubb Limited provides insurance and reinsurance products worldwide. The company's North America Commercial P&C Insurance segment offers commercial property, casualty, workers' compensation, package policies, risk management, financial lines, marine, construction, environmental, medical risk, cyber risk, surety, and casualty; and group accident and health insurance to large, middle market, and small commercial businesses. Its North America Personal P&C Insurance segment provides affluent and high net worth individuals and families with homeowners, automobile and collector cars, valuable articles, personal and excess liability, travel insurance, and recreational marine insurance and services. The company's North America Agricultural Insurance segment offers multiple peril crop and crop-hail insurance; and coverage for farm, ranch, and specialty property and casualty, and commercial agriculture products. Its Overseas General Insurance segment provides coverage for traditional commercial property and casualty; specialty categories, such as financial lines, marine, energy, aviation, political risk, and construction; and group accident and health, and traditional and specialty personal lines for corporations, middle markets, and small customers through retail brokers, agents, and other channels. The company's Global Reinsurance segment offers traditional and specialty reinsurance under the Chubb Tempest Re brand to property and casualty companies. Its Life Insurance segment provides protection and savings products comprising whole life, endowment plans, individual and life, group term life, health protection, personal accident, credit life, universal life, group employee benefits, and unit linked contracts. It markets its products primarily through insurance and reinsurance brokers. The company was formerly known as ACE Limited and changed its name to Chubb Limited in January 2016. Chubb Limited was incorporated in 1985 and is headquartered in Zurich, Switzerland.

About Sun Life Financial

Sun Life Financial Inc., a financial services company, provides savings, retirement, and pension products worldwide. The company operates in five segments: Asset Management, Canada, U.S., Asia, and Corporate. It offers various insurance products, such as term and permanent life; personal health, which includes prescription drugs, dental, and vision care; critical illness; long-term care; and disability, as well as reinsurance. The company also provides advice for financial planning and retirement planning services; investments products, such as mutual funds, segregated funds, and annuities; and asset and investment management products consisting of pooled funds, institutional portfolios, and pension funds. In addition, it offers real estate services; manages equity capital in various private and listed funds, as well as mezzanine debt, middle market direct lending, high-yield bonds, and syndicated loans; and operates as an investment grade fixed income investor, real estate investment management advisor, infrastructure investment manager, and alternative credit investment manager. The company was formerly known as Sun Life Financial Services of Canada Inc. and changed its name to Sun Life Financial Inc. in July 2003. Sun Life Financial Inc. was founded in 1871 and is headquartered in Toronto, Canada.