Sun Life Financial Inc. $SLF Holdings Cut by Todd Asset Management LLC

Todd Asset Management LLC decreased its stake in Sun Life Financial Inc. (NYSE:SLF) (TSE:SLF) by 2.3% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 656,126 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 15,394 shares during the quarter. Todd Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Sun Life Financial were worth $40,943,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Nicola Wealth Management LTD. lifted its position in Sun Life Financial by 28.7% in the 3rd quarter. Nicola Wealth Management LTD. now owns 356,800 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $21,427,000 after buying an additional 79,500 shares in the last quarter. Intact Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in Sun Life Financial by 226.8% in the 3rd quarter. Intact Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,270,947 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $76,327,000 after buying an additional 882,070 shares in the last quarter. Citigroup Inc. lifted its position in Sun Life Financial by 117.7% in the 3rd quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 372,723 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $22,386,000 after buying an additional 201,485 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its position in Sun Life Financial by 9.8% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 2,733,974 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $164,120,000 after buying an additional 243,323 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Achmea Investment Management B.V. purchased a new stake in Sun Life Financial in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $2,341,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 52.26% of the company’s stock.

Sun Life Financial Trading Up 0.0%

SLF opened at $73.10 on Monday. The stock has a market capitalization of $44.32 billion, a PE ratio of 18.84 and a beta of 0.91. Sun Life Financial Inc. has a 1-year low of $56.22 and a 1-year high of $74.16. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $67.54 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $64.15.

Sun Life Financial (NYSE:SLF) (TSE:SLF) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The financial services provider reported $1.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.35 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $6.41 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $925.99 million. Sun Life Financial had a net margin of 7.85% and a return on equity of 17.80%. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.82 EPS. On average, research analysts predict that Sun Life Financial Inc. will post 5.74 EPS for the current year.

Sun Life Financial Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Investors of record on Wednesday, May 27th will be paid a dividend of $0.96 per share. This represents a $3.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, May 27th. This is a positive change from Sun Life Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.92. Sun Life Financial’s payout ratio is 69.59%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

SLF has been the topic of several analyst reports. TD Securities restated a “buy” rating on shares of Sun Life Financial in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. National Bank Financial raised shares of Sun Life Financial from a “sector perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, April 24th. Scotiabank reissued a “sector perform” rating on shares of Sun Life Financial in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce reaffirmed a “neutral” rating on shares of Sun Life Financial in a report on Friday, May 8th. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Sun Life Financial from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Saturday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have given a Buy rating, four have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $86.50.

Sun Life Financial Company 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.