681 Shares in Sun Life Financial Inc. (NYSE:SLF) Acquired by BankPlus Trust Department

BankPlus Trust Department bought a new position in Sun Life Financial Inc. (NYSE:SLF) (TSE:SLF) in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor bought 681 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $40,000.

A number of other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the stock. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company increased its stake in Sun Life Financial by 7.6% in the 3rd quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 9,256,384 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $537,288,000 after purchasing an additional 654,404 shares during the period. CIBC Asset Management Inc boosted its position in shares of Sun Life Financial by 10.8% during the fourth quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 7,192,059 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $427,712,000 after purchasing an additional 703,391 shares in the last quarter. National Bank of Canada FI boosted its position in shares of Sun Life Financial by 28.2% during the third quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 5,837,298 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $338,621,000 after purchasing an additional 1,284,556 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC boosted its holdings in Sun Life Financial by 5.2% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 5,189,939 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $301,047,000 after acquiring an additional 257,178 shares in the last quarter. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its holdings in Sun Life Financial by 1.2% in the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 2,841,712 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $164,876,000 after acquiring an additional 34,072 shares in the last quarter. 52.26% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

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

Sun Life Financial Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:SLF opened at $55.34 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $31.70 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.41, a PEG ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 1.03. Sun Life Financial Inc. has a 1 year low of $46.41 and a 1 year high of $62.85. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $58.04 and its 200-day moving average price is $57.60.

Sun Life Financial (NYSE:SLF) (TSE:SLF) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The financial services provider reported $1.20 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.90 by $0.30. Sun Life Financial had a return on equity of 16.86% and a net margin of 8.08%. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Sun Life Financial Inc. will post 5.19 earnings per share for the current year.

Sun Life Financial Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently announced 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 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.25%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, February 26th. Sun Life Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 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.