Russell Investments Group Ltd. Lowers Stock Position in Sun Life Financial Inc. (NYSE:SLF)

Russell Investments Group Ltd. trimmed its holdings in Sun Life Financial Inc. (NYSE:SLF - Free Report) TSE: SLF by 2.4% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 638,236 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 15,534 shares during the period. Russell Investments Group Ltd. owned 0.11% of Sun Life Financial worth $33,234,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Headlands Technologies LLC bought a new stake in Sun Life Financial during the 4th quarter worth approximately $43,000. Truist Financial Corp grew its position in shares of Sun Life Financial by 13.0% in the 4th quarter. Truist Financial Corp now owns 6,916 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $359,000 after buying an additional 795 shares during the last quarter. Syon Capital LLC increased its stake in shares of Sun Life Financial by 48.5% in the fourth quarter. Syon Capital LLC now owns 7,223 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $375,000 after buying an additional 2,358 shares during the period. Lorne Steinberg Wealth Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Sun Life Financial by 2.6% during the fourth quarter. Lorne Steinberg Wealth Management Inc. now owns 106,878 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $5,544,000 after acquiring an additional 2,757 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Duality Advisers LP bought a new stake in Sun Life Financial in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $2,885,000. Institutional investors own 52.26% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on shares of Sun Life Financial in a research report on Thursday, February 22nd. They issued a "buy" rating on the stock.

Sun Life Financial Trading Up 0.9 %

SLF stock traded up $0.45 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $51.49. The company's stock had a trading volume of 910,024 shares, compared to its average volume of 610,804. Sun Life Financial Inc. has a 12 month low of $44.57 and a 12 month high of $55.46. The business's 50 day moving average price is $53.28 and its 200 day moving average price is $51.41. The company has a market cap of $29.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.27, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.28 and a beta of 1.01.

Sun Life Financial (NYSE:SLF - Get Free Report) TSE: SLF last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 7th. The financial services provider reported $1.23 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.17 by $0.06. Sun Life Financial had a net margin of 7.79% and a return on equity of 17.30%. The company had revenue of $13.73 billion for the quarter. As a group, equities analysts expect that Sun Life Financial Inc. will post 5.03 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Sun Life Financial Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 28th. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 28th were issued a $0.581 dividend. This is a boost from Sun Life Financial's previous quarterly dividend of $0.56. This represents a $2.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.51%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 27th. Sun Life Financial's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 59.79%.

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.