Todd Asset Management LLC Increases Stake in Sun Life Financial Inc. (NYSE:SLF)

Todd Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Sun Life Financial Inc. (NYSE:SLF) (TSE:SLF) by 6.2% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 635,702 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 37,194 shares during the period. Todd Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Sun Life Financial were worth $37,723,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company boosted its position in shares of Sun Life Financial by 7.6% in the third 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. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its position in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 34,072 shares during the period. CIBC Asset Management Inc boosted its position in shares of Sun Life Financial by 10.8% in the fourth quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 7,192,059 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $427,712,000 after purchasing an additional 703,391 shares during the period. Sanctuary Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Sun Life Financial in the third quarter worth approximately $878,000. Finally, FMR LLC boosted its position in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 257,178 shares during the period. 52.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Sun Life Financial Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:SLF opened at $55.15 on Tuesday. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $58.13 and a 200 day moving average price of $57.55. Sun Life Financial Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $46.41 and a fifty-two week high of $62.85. The firm has a market cap of $31.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.36, a P/E/G ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 1.03.

Sun Life Financial (NYSE:SLF) (TSE:SLF) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The financial services provider reported $1.20 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.90 by $0.30. Sun Life Financial had a net margin of 8.08% and a return on equity of 16.86%. As a group, research analysts predict 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 disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, February 26th will be given a dividend of $0.5876 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, February 26th. This represents a $2.35 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.26%. Sun Life Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 60.16%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

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

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.