Vanguard Group Inc. Has $1.52 Billion Position in Sun Life Financial Inc. $SLF

Vanguard Group Inc. lessened its stake in shares of Sun Life Financial Inc. (NYSE:SLF) (TSE:SLF) by 0.3% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 25,349,312 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 72,899 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc.’s holdings in Sun Life Financial were worth $1,522,201,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Private Trust Co. NA increased its position in shares of Sun Life Financial by 130.6% in the second quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 429 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 243 shares during the period. Westside Investment Management Inc. grew its stake in Sun Life Financial by 62.8% during the second quarter. Westside Investment Management Inc. now owns 578 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $38,000 after buying an additional 223 shares in the last quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in Sun Life Financial by 184.1% in the 3rd quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 588 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $35,000 after buying an additional 381 shares during the period. Tobam acquired a new position in shares of Sun Life Financial in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $44,000. Finally, Addison Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Sun Life Financial by 48.8% during the 2nd quarter. Addison Advisors LLC now owns 704 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $47,000 after acquiring an additional 231 shares during the period. 52.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

SLF has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. BMO Capital Markets reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Sun Life Financial in a research note on Friday, February 13th. Evercore reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Sun Life Financial in a report on Thursday. TD Securities reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Sun Life Financial in a report on Thursday, February 12th. Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce reaffirmed a “neutral” rating on shares of Sun Life Financial in a research note on Thursday, January 8th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating on shares of Sun Life Financial in a research note on Friday, February 13th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have given a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $86.50.

Sun Life Financial Stock Up 1.6%

NYSE SLF opened at $66.36 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $36.76 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.08 and a beta of 0.88. Sun Life Financial Inc. has a twelve month low of $52.44 and a twelve month high of $69.67. The business’s fifty day moving average is $63.59 and its 200 day moving average is $60.91.

Sun Life Financial (NYSE:SLF) (TSE:SLF) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 11th. The financial services provider reported $1.41 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.35 by $0.06. Sun Life Financial had a return on equity of 17.76% and a net margin of 8.48%.The firm had revenue of $973.53 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $973.53 million. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.68 earnings per share. On average, research analysts anticipate that Sun Life Financial Inc. will post 5.19 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Sun Life Financial Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 25th will be given a dividend of $0.92 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, February 25th. This represents a $3.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.5%. Sun Life Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 60.91%.

Sun Life Financial Profile

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.