Letko Brosseau & Associates Inc. reduced its stake in shares of Sun Life Financial Inc. (NYSE:SLF - Free Report) TSE: SLF by 1.2% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,653,564 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 33,059 shares during the quarter. Sun Life Financial accounts for approximately 3.0% of Letko Brosseau & Associates Inc.'s portfolio, making the stock its 9th largest holding. Letko Brosseau & Associates Inc. owned 0.42% of Sun Life Financial worth $157,476,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.
Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Human Investing LLC purchased a new position in shares of Sun Life Financial in the fourth quarter valued at $26,000. Asset Planning Inc purchased a new position in shares of Sun Life Financial during the 4th quarter worth approximately $40,000. BankPlus Trust Department purchased a new stake in Sun Life Financial in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $40,000. Dixon Mitchell Investment Counsel Inc. acquired a new stake in Sun Life Financial during the 4th quarter valued at $45,000. Finally, GeoWealth Management LLC increased its position in Sun Life Financial by 4,657.1% during the fourth quarter. GeoWealth Management LLC now owns 999 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $59,000 after buying an additional 978 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 52.26% of the company's stock.
Sun Life Financial Trading Up 0.1%
SLF traded up $0.09 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $63.06. The company's stock had a trading volume of 502,002 shares, compared to its average volume of 656,244. Sun Life Financial Inc. has a 52-week low of $46.41 and a 52-week high of $63.34. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $57.35 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $58.14. The firm has a market cap of $35.79 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.42, a PEG ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 0.90.
Sun Life Financial (NYSE:SLF - Get Free Report) TSE: SLF last released its earnings results on Thursday, May 8th. The financial services provider reported $1.27 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.22 by $0.05. Sun Life Financial had a net margin of 8.08% and a return on equity of 16.86%. The firm had revenue of $7.91 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.44 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.40 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts expect that Sun Life Financial Inc. will post 5.19 EPS for the current year.
Sun Life Financial Increases Dividend
The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Investors of record on Wednesday, May 28th will be given a $0.6332 dividend. This is a positive change from Sun Life Financial's previous quarterly dividend of $0.59. This represents a $2.53 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.02%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, May 28th. Sun Life Financial's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 62.09%.
Analyst Ratings Changes
A number of research firms recently commented on SLF. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price objective on Sun Life Financial from $82.00 to $88.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday. 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 report on Monday. Cormark raised shares of Sun Life Financial from a "hold" rating to a "moderate buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, National Bank Financial raised shares of Sun Life Financial from a "sector perform" rating to an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 15th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, four have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $88.00.
Read Our Latest Research Report on Sun Life Financial
About Sun Life Financial
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Free Report)
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.
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