90,356 Shares in Sun Life Financial Inc. $SLF Purchased by SEB Asset Management AB

SEB Asset Management AB purchased a new stake in shares of Sun Life Financial Inc. (NYSE:SLF - Free Report) TSE: SLF in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 90,356 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $5,643,000.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in SLF. Intact Investment Management Inc. raised its position in Sun Life Financial by 58.3% in the 4th quarter. Intact Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,012,083 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $125,598,000 after purchasing an additional 741,136 shares during the last quarter. Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Sun Life Financial by 1,342.4% during the first quarter. Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. now owns 50,152 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $3,141,000 after purchasing an additional 46,675 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Sun Life Financial by 2.1% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 25,884,084 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,615,788,000 after purchasing an additional 534,772 shares during the last quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA increased its stake in shares of Sun Life Financial by 8.4% in the fourth quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA now owns 329,274 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $20,582,000 after buying an additional 25,540 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Legal & General Group Plc raised its holdings in shares of Sun Life Financial by 1.0% in the fourth quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 3,896,312 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $243,542,000 after buying an additional 36,698 shares during the last quarter. 52.26% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Sun Life Financial Trading Up 0.5%

Sun Life Financial stock opened at $81.42 on Thursday. Sun Life Financial Inc. has a 1 year low of $56.22 and a 1 year high of $82.25. The company has a market cap of $45.38 billion, a PE ratio of 20.98 and a beta of 0.88. The company's 50-day moving average is $76.48 and its two-hundred day moving average is $69.34.

Sun Life Financial (NYSE:SLF - Get Free Report) TSE: SLF last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The financial services provider reported $1.38 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.35 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $6.41 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $925.99 million. Sun Life Financial had a net margin of 7.85% and a return on equity of 17.80%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.82 EPS. Research analysts forecast that Sun Life Financial Inc. will post 5.69 EPS for the current year.

Sun Life Financial Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, May 27th were issued a dividend of $0.96 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, May 27th. This represents a $3.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.7%. This is a boost from Sun Life Financial's previous quarterly dividend of $0.92. Sun Life Financial's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 72.94%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages recently issued reports on SLF. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Sun Life Financial from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Saturday, July 18th. TD Cowen reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of Sun Life Financial in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. Weiss Ratings reissued a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Sun Life Financial in a research note on Monday, July 6th. National Bank Financial upgraded shares of Sun Life Financial from a "sector perform" rating to an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, April 24th. Finally, Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce reaffirmed a "neutral" rating on shares of Sun Life Financial in a report on Friday, May 8th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have given a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Sun Life Financial has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $84.67.

Sun Life Financial Company Profile

Sun Life Financial Inc, founded in 1865 and headquartered in Toronto, Ontario, is an international financial services organization that provides a range of insurance, wealth management and asset management solutions. The company serves individual and institutional clients, offering products designed to protect against life and health risks, help clients save for retirement, and manage investments on behalf of customers and third parties.

Core business activities include life and health insurance, group benefits for employers, retirement and pension products, and wealth management services such as mutual funds and segregated fund solutions.

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