Lombard Odier Asset Management Switzerland SA Reduces Position in Sun Life Financial Inc. $SLF

Key Points

• Lombard Odier Asset Management Switzerland SA cut its Sun Life Financial position by 64.9% in the first quarter, while institutional investors overall owned 52.26% of the company. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund made a particularly large purchase, increasing its holdings by more than 2,000%.
• Sun Life shares opened at $84.09, near their 12-month high of $84.38. The company beat quarterly earnings expectations with EPS of $1.38 versus the $1.35 consensus estimate.
• Sun Life raised its quarterly dividend to $0.96, representing a $3.84 annualized payout and a 4.6% yield. Analysts maintain a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating with an average price target of $84.67.

Lombard Odier Asset Management Switzerland SA decreased its position in Sun Life Financial Inc. (NYSE:SLF - Free Report) TSE: SLF by 64.9% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 10,659 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 19,677 shares during the period. Lombard Odier Asset Management Switzerland SA's holdings in Sun Life Financial were worth $668,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in SLF. Waverly Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Sun Life Financial during the 1st quarter valued at $446,000. Cumberland Partners Ltd boosted its position in Sun Life Financial by 3.2% during the 1st quarter. Cumberland Partners Ltd now owns 6,678 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $418,000 after buying an additional 209 shares during the period. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund grew its holdings in Sun Life Financial by 2,187.4% in the 1st quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund now owns 1,601,200 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $100,276,000 after acquiring an additional 1,531,200 shares during the last quarter. Compound Planning Inc. grew its holdings in Sun Life Financial by 34.0% in the 1st quarter. Compound Planning Inc. now owns 7,800 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $488,000 after acquiring an additional 1,980 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership increased its position in shares of Sun Life Financial by 16.8% in the first quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 113,654 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $7,112,000 after acquiring an additional 16,376 shares during the period. 52.26% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Sun Life Financial Trading Up 1.4%

Shares of NYSE SLF opened at $84.09 on Wednesday. Sun Life Financial Inc. has a 12 month low of $56.22 and a 12 month high of $84.38. The firm has a market capitalization of $46.87 billion, a PE ratio of 21.67 and a beta of 0.88. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $77.34 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $69.89.

Sun Life Financial (NYSE:SLF - Get Free Report) TSE: SLF last posted its 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 firm 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 period last year, the company posted $1.82 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Sun Life Financial Inc. will post 5.69 earnings per share for the current year.

Sun Life Financial Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, May 27th were issued a $0.96 dividend. This represents a $3.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.6%. This is a boost from Sun Life Financial's previous quarterly dividend of $0.92. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, May 27th. Sun Life Financial's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 72.94%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

SLF has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. TD Securities reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Sun Life Financial in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. Argus set a $81.00 price target on Sun Life Financial in a report on Wednesday, June 10th. Weiss Ratings restated a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Sun Life Financial in a report on Monday, July 6th. Barclays reaffirmed an "underweight" rating on shares of Sun Life Financial in a research report on Tuesday, July 7th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reiterated an "outperform" rating on shares of Sun Life Financial in a research report on Friday, May 8th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have assigned a Buy rating, five have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $84.67.

About Sun Life Financial

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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