Sun Life Financial Inc. (NYSE:SLF) Sees Significant Growth in Short Interest

Sun Life Financial Inc. (NYSE:SLF) (TSE:SLF) was the recipient of a significant growth in short interest in the month of January. As of January 31st, there was short interest totalling 2,440,000 shares, a growth of 47.0% from the January 15th total of 1,660,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 642,500 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 3.8 days. Currently, 0.4% of the company’s shares are sold short.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Human Investing LLC purchased a new position in shares of Sun Life Financial during the fourth quarter valued at $26,000. Assetmark Inc. grew its holdings in Sun Life Financial by 2,747.4% during the 3rd quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 541 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 522 shares during the last quarter. Addison Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Sun Life Financial by 124.9% in the third quarter. Addison Advisors LLC now owns 650 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $38,000 after acquiring an additional 361 shares during the last quarter. Asset Planning Inc bought a new position in Sun Life Financial during the fourth quarter worth about $40,000. Finally, BankPlus Trust Department bought a new position in Sun Life Financial during the fourth quarter worth about $40,000. Institutional investors own 52.26% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on SLF. StockNews.com cut shares of Sun Life Financial from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. National Bank Financial upgraded Sun Life Financial from a “sector perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 15th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, two have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Sun Life Financial currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy”.

Sun Life Financial Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:SLF traded down $0.11 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $55.17. The company had a trading volume of 858,344 shares, compared to its average volume of 554,788. The stock has a market cap of $34.65 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.29, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 1.03. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $58.78 and its 200-day simple moving average is $57.18. Sun Life Financial has a twelve month low of $46.41 and a twelve month high of $62.85.

Sun Life Financial (NYSE:SLF) (TSE:SLF) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The financial services provider reported $1.20 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.90 by $0.30. Sun Life Financial had a net margin of 7.32% and a return on equity of 17.44%. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Sun Life Financial will post 4.76 EPS for the current year.

Sun Life Financial Cuts Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, February 26th will be given a dividend of $0.5876 per share. This represents a $2.35 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.26%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, February 26th. Sun Life Financial’s payout ratio is currently 57.46%.

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.