Sun Life Financial Inc. $SLF Shares Sold by Capital World Investors

Capital World Investors reduced its position in Sun Life Financial Inc. (NYSE:SLF) (TSE:SLF) by 66.4% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 11,600 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 22,933 shares during the period. Capital World Investors’ holdings in Sun Life Financial were worth $724,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in SLF. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC lifted its stake in shares of Sun Life Financial by 68.4% in the 4th quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 411 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 167 shares during the period. Sittner & Nelson LLC acquired a new position in shares of Sun Life Financial in the 4th quarter valued at $33,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC raised its position in Sun Life Financial by 184.1% during the third quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 588 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $35,000 after acquiring an additional 381 shares during the period. LOM Asset Management Ltd acquired a new position in Sun Life Financial during the fourth quarter worth $53,000. Finally, Triumph Capital Management acquired a new position in Sun Life Financial during the third quarter worth $64,000. 52.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on SLF shares. TD Cowen restated a “buy” rating on shares of Sun Life Financial in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce restated a “neutral” rating on shares of Sun Life Financial in a research report on Friday, May 8th. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Sun Life Financial from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Saturday, May 23rd. Evercore restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Sun Life Financial in a research report on Thursday, February 19th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating on shares of Sun Life Financial in a research report on Friday, February 13th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have issued a Buy rating, four have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Sun Life Financial currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $84.67.

Sun Life Financial Stock Up 1.3%

Sun Life Financial stock opened at $74.90 on Thursday. Sun Life Financial Inc. has a 52-week low of $56.22 and a 52-week high of $75.04. The firm has a market capitalization of $41.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.30 and a beta of 0.89. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $70.17 and a 200-day simple moving average of $65.40.

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 analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.35 by $0.03. Sun Life Financial had a net margin of 7.85% and a return on equity of 17.80%. The business had revenue of $6.41 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $925.99 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.82 earnings per share. On average, research analysts anticipate that Sun Life Financial Inc. will post 5.71 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Sun Life Financial Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, May 27th will be issued a dividend of $0.96 per share. 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. This represents a $3.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.1%. Sun Life Financial’s payout ratio is currently 72.68%.

About Sun Life Financial

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.