Sun Life Financial Inc. (NYSE:SLF) Sees Significant Drop in Short Interest

Sun Life Financial Inc. (NYSE:SLF) (TSE:SLF) was the recipient of a significant decline in short interest in the month of September. As of September 30th, there was short interest totalling 1,910,000 shares, a decline of 63.1% from the September 15th total of 5,180,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 559,800 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 3.4 days. Currently, 0.3% of the company’s shares are sold short.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Sun Life Financial

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Public Sector Pension Investment Board boosted its position in shares of Sun Life Financial by 372.8% in the fourth quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 731,780 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $38,137,000 after purchasing an additional 577,015 shares during the period. Voisard Asset Management Group Inc. bought a new position in Sun Life Financial during the fourth quarter valued at $26,000. V Square Quantitative Management LLC bought a new stake in Sun Life Financial in the fourth quarter worth about $949,000. Syon Capital LLC boosted its holdings in Sun Life Financial by 48.5% during the 4th quarter. Syon Capital LLC now owns 7,223 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $375,000 after acquiring an additional 2,358 shares during the period. Finally, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Sun Life Financial by 20.5% during the fourth quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 1,620,801 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $84,055,000 after purchasing an additional 275,334 shares during the last quarter. 52.26% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, Barclays began coverage on Sun Life Financial in a research note on Thursday, September 5th. They set an “equal weight” rating on the stock.

Sun Life Financial Trading Down 0.1 %

SLF traded down $0.07 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $57.06. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 57,216 shares, compared to its average volume of 677,785. Sun Life Financial has a 1 year low of $44.57 and a 1 year high of $58.51. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $54.19 and its 200-day moving average is $51.90. The firm has a market capitalization of $32.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.61, a PEG ratio of 1.50 and a beta of 1.00.

Sun Life Financial (NYSE:SLF) (TSE:SLF) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, August 12th. The financial services provider reported $1.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.18 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $6.52 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.72 billion. Sun Life Financial had a return on equity of 17.47% and a net margin of 8.60%. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Sun Life Financial will post 4.86 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Sun Life Financial Cuts Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 27th. Investors of record on Wednesday, August 28th were given a dividend of $0.587 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, August 28th. This represents a $2.35 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.11%. Sun Life Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 60.10%.

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.