AGF Management Ltd. Acquires 734,549 Shares of Sun Life Financial Inc. (NYSE:SLF)

AGF Management Ltd. boosted its position in Sun Life Financial Inc. (NYSE:SLF - Free Report) TSE: SLF by 91.7% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 1,535,288 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 734,549 shares during the quarter. AGF Management Ltd. owned about 0.26% of Sun Life Financial worth $79,620,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in SLF. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC increased its stake in shares of Sun Life Financial by 8.6% in the 3rd quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC now owns 62,541 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $3,052,000 after acquiring an additional 4,963 shares during the last quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. raised its position in shares of Sun Life Financial by 13.5% during the 3rd quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. now owns 14,368 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $701,000 after buying an additional 1,713 shares during the period. Raymond James & Associates grew its position in Sun Life Financial by 30.3% in the third quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 34,839 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,700,000 after acquiring an additional 8,103 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its stake in Sun Life Financial by 4.8% during the third quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 790,523 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $38,577,000 after acquiring an additional 35,865 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Advisor Partners II LLC lifted its stake in shares of Sun Life Financial by 7.3% in the 3rd quarter. Advisor Partners II LLC now owns 7,799 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $381,000 after purchasing an additional 528 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 52.26% of the company's stock.

Sun Life Financial Stock Performance

Shares of SLF traded down $3.60 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $50.10. 3,113,710 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 554,286. The company has a market cap of $29.11 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.81, a P/E/G ratio of 1.24 and a beta of 1.00. The stock's 50-day moving average is $53.05 and its 200-day moving average is $51.67. Sun Life Financial Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $44.57 and a fifty-two week high of $55.46.

Sun Life Financial (NYSE:SLF - Get Free Report) TSE: SLF last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 7th. The financial services provider reported $1.23 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.17 by $0.06. The business had revenue of $13.73 billion during the quarter. Sun Life Financial had a net margin of 8.94% and a return on equity of 17.00%. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Sun Life Financial Inc. will post 4.97 EPS for the current year.

Sun Life Financial Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 28th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, May 29th will be paid a $0.588 dividend. This represents a $2.35 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.69%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, May 29th. This is a boost from Sun Life Financial's previous quarterly dividend of $0.58. Sun Life Financial's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 59.34%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, Jefferies Financial Group initiated 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 Company 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.