Sun Life Financial Inc. (NYSE:SLF) Shares Acquired by Erste Asset Management GmbH

Erste Asset Management GmbH boosted its position in Sun Life Financial Inc. (NYSE:SLF) (TSE:SLF) by 0.7% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 28,400 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 200 shares during the period. Erste Asset Management GmbH’s holdings in Sun Life Financial were worth $1,693,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Assetmark Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Sun Life Financial by 2,747.4% in the 3rd quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 541 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 522 shares during the period. Entropy Technologies LP acquired a new stake in Sun Life Financial in the third quarter valued at $788,000. Plato Investment Management Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Sun Life Financial during the 3rd quarter worth $101,000. CIBC Asset Management Inc grew its stake in shares of Sun Life Financial by 1.3% during the 3rd quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 6,488,668 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $377,311,000 after purchasing an additional 81,261 shares during the period. Finally, Natixis Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Sun Life Financial by 13.3% in the 3rd quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 43,246 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,509,000 after purchasing an additional 5,086 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 52.26% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have weighed in on the stock. StockNews.com lowered shares of Sun Life Financial from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Cormark upgraded Sun Life Financial from a “hold” rating to a “moderate buy” rating in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, National Bank Financial raised Sun Life Financial from a “sector perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 15th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, one has issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy”.

Sun Life Financial Trading Up 2.0 %

Shares of SLF opened at $55.40 on Friday. Sun Life Financial Inc. has a 12-month low of $46.41 and a 12-month high of $62.85. The stock has a market cap of $31.74 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.43, a PEG ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 1.04. The company has a 50-day moving average of $56.98 and a two-hundred day moving average of $57.79.

Sun Life Financial (NYSE:SLF) (TSE:SLF) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 12th. The financial services provider reported $1.20 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.90 by $0.30. Sun Life Financial had a return on equity of 16.86% and a net margin of 8.08%. As a group, analysts forecast that Sun Life Financial Inc. will post 5.19 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Sun Life Financial Cuts Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 26th will be paid a dividend of $0.5876 per share. This represents a $2.35 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.24%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, February 26th. Sun Life Financial’s payout ratio is currently 60.16%.

Sun Life Financial Profile

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.