Andra AP fonden Purchases Shares of 3,000 Sun Life Financial Inc. (NYSE:SLF)

Andra AP fonden acquired a new stake in shares of Sun Life Financial Inc. (NYSE:SLF) (TSE:SLF) in the 2nd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor acquired 3,000 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $147,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Caprock Group LLC purchased a new stake in Sun Life Financial during the second quarter valued at about $262,000. Candriam S.C.A. increased its position in Sun Life Financial by 12.5% during the 2nd quarter. Candriam S.C.A. now owns 12,092 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $593,000 after purchasing an additional 1,342 shares in the last quarter. Fiera Capital Corp increased its position in Sun Life Financial by 3.0% during the 2nd quarter. Fiera Capital Corp now owns 850,638 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $41,726,000 after purchasing an additional 24,911 shares in the last quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc raised its holdings in Sun Life Financial by 16.5% in the second quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 6,407,407 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $313,976,000 after buying an additional 905,679 shares during the period. Finally, Natixis Advisors LLC lifted its position in Sun Life Financial by 5.3% during the second quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 38,160 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,869,000 after buying an additional 1,923 shares in the last quarter. 52.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on SLF shares. Argus raised shares of Sun Life Financial to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, June 3rd. Barclays began coverage on Sun Life Financial in a research report on Thursday, September 5th. They issued an “equal weight” rating on the stock.

Sun Life Financial Stock Up 1.2 %

NYSE SLF opened at $55.99 on Friday. Sun Life Financial Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $44.57 and a fifty-two week high of $56.04. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $51.35 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $51.53. The stock has a market cap of $32.46 billion, a PE ratio of 14.32, a P/E/G ratio of 1.40 and a beta of 1.00.

Sun Life Financial (NYSE:SLF) (TSE:SLF) last posted its earnings results on Monday, August 12th. The financial services provider reported $1.25 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.18 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $6.52 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.72 billion. Sun Life Financial had a net margin of 8.60% and a return on equity of 17.47%. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Sun Life Financial Inc. will post 4.86 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Sun Life Financial Cuts Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 27th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, August 28th will be given a $0.587 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, August 28th. This represents a $2.35 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.19%. Sun Life Financial’s payout ratio is currently 59.85%.

About Sun Life Financial

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.