Sun Life Financial Inc. $SLF Shares Bought by Nicola Wealth Management LTD.

Nicola Wealth Management LTD. grew its stake in Sun Life Financial Inc. (NYSE:SLF) (TSE:SLF) by 2.8% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 366,900 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 10,100 shares during the period. Sun Life Financial makes up approximately 2.1% of Nicola Wealth Management LTD.’s portfolio, making the stock its 12th biggest holding. Nicola Wealth Management LTD. owned about 0.07% of Sun Life Financial worth $22,907,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of SLF. Brighton Jones LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Sun Life Financial during the fourth quarter worth approximately $244,000. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Sun Life Financial by 113.8% during the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 8,022 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $454,000 after purchasing an additional 4,270 shares during the last quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Sun Life Financial during the second quarter worth approximately $204,000. Prudential Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Sun Life Financial during the second quarter worth approximately $232,000. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Sun Life Financial by 66.4% during the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,734 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $115,000 after purchasing an additional 692 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 52.26% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently commented on SLF. TD Securities restated a “buy” rating on shares of Sun Life Financial in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. Evercore reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Sun Life Financial in a research report on Thursday, February 19th. National Bank Financial upgraded Sun Life Financial from a “sector perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, April 24th. BMO Capital Markets reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Sun Life Financial in a research report on Friday, May 8th. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut Sun Life Financial from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Saturday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have issued a Buy rating, four have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Sun Life Financial currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $86.50.

Sun Life Financial Trading Up 0.0%

NYSE SLF opened at $73.10 on Monday. The business’s 50 day moving average is $67.54 and its two-hundred day moving average is $64.15. Sun Life Financial Inc. has a 12-month low of $56.22 and a 12-month high of $74.16. The stock has a market capitalization of $44.32 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.84 and a beta of 0.91.

Sun Life Financial (NYSE:SLF) (TSE:SLF) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The financial services provider reported $1.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.35 by $0.03. Sun Life Financial had a return on equity of 17.80% and a net margin of 7.85%.The company had revenue of $6.41 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $925.99 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.82 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that Sun Life Financial Inc. will post 5.74 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Sun Life Financial Increases Dividend

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

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.