BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp Grows Position in Sun Life Financial Inc. (NYSE:SLF)

BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp grew its stake in Sun Life Financial Inc. (NYSE:SLF - Free Report) TSE: SLF by 19.8% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 1,898,866 shares of the financial services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 313,176 shares during the period. Sun Life Financial comprises 0.7% of BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp's investment portfolio, making the stock its 25th biggest holding. BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp owned approximately 0.30% of Sun Life Financial worth $112,602,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Human Investing LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Sun Life Financial during the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. Asset Planning Inc purchased a new stake in Sun Life Financial during the 4th quarter worth approximately $40,000. BankPlus Trust Department acquired a new stake in Sun Life Financial during the 4th quarter worth approximately $40,000. GeoWealth Management LLC boosted its position in Sun Life Financial by 4,657.1% in the 4th quarter. GeoWealth Management LLC now owns 999 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $59,000 after buying an additional 978 shares during the period. Finally, JFS Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its position in Sun Life Financial by 432.0% in the 4th quarter. JFS Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,032 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $61,000 after buying an additional 838 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 52.26% of the company's stock.

Sun Life Financial Trading Up 0.8%

NYSE:SLF traded up $0.53 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $63.64. The company's stock had a trading volume of 5,005,121 shares, compared to its average volume of 666,095. Sun Life Financial Inc. has a 52-week low of $46.41 and a 52-week high of $63.93. The stock has a market capitalization of $35.94 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.57, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 0.90. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $58.48 and a 200-day moving average of $58.46.

Sun Life Financial (NYSE:SLF - Get Free Report) TSE: SLF last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 8th. The financial services provider reported $1.27 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.22 by $0.05. Sun Life Financial had a return on equity of 16.86% and a net margin of 8.08%. The business had revenue of $7.91 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $6.44 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.40 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Sun Life Financial Inc. will post 5.19 earnings per share for the current year.

Sun Life Financial Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Investors of record on Wednesday, May 28th will be issued a $0.6332 dividend. This represents a $2.53 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.98%. This is an increase from Sun Life Financial's previous quarterly dividend of $0.59. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, May 28th. Sun Life Financial's dividend payout ratio is 62.09%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

SLF has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Cormark raised Sun Life Financial from a "hold" rating to a "moderate buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Scotiabank restated an "outperform" rating on shares of Sun Life Financial in a report on Thursday, May 1st. BMO Capital Markets reiterated an "outperform" rating on shares of Sun Life Financial in a research note on Monday, May 12th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price objective on Sun Life Financial from $82.00 to $88.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, May 12th. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut shares of Sun Life Financial from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, four have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Sun Life Financial has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $88.00.

Sun Life Financial Profile

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.