Sun Life Financial Inc. (NYSE:SLF) Stock Position Lifted by Unigestion Holding SA

Unigestion Holding SA lifted its stake in shares of Sun Life Financial Inc. (NYSE:SLF) (TSE:SLF) by 21.7% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 242,161 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 43,119 shares during the quarter. Unigestion Holding SA’s holdings in Sun Life Financial were worth $14,360,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Private Advisor Group LLC increased its stake in Sun Life Financial by 2.1% during the 4th quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 8,643 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $513,000 after buying an additional 181 shares during the period. Checchi Capital Advisers LLC increased its stake in shares of Sun Life Financial by 5.4% during the fourth quarter. Checchi Capital Advisers LLC now owns 3,719 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $221,000 after acquiring an additional 192 shares during the period. Erste Asset Management GmbH raised its holdings in Sun Life Financial by 0.7% during the fourth quarter. Erste Asset Management GmbH now owns 28,400 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,693,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. Triasima Portfolio Management inc. lifted its position in Sun Life Financial by 0.5% in the fourth quarter. Triasima Portfolio Management inc. now owns 47,900 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,843,000 after purchasing an additional 250 shares during the period. Finally, Five Oceans Advisors boosted its stake in Sun Life Financial by 8.1% during the 4th quarter. Five Oceans Advisors now owns 3,875 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $230,000 after purchasing an additional 292 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 52.26% of the company’s stock.

Sun Life Financial Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:SLF opened at $54.53 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $31.13 billion, a PE ratio of 14.20, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 1.04. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $56.56 and a 200-day moving average of $58.01. Sun Life Financial Inc. has a one year low of $46.41 and a one year high of $62.85.

Sun Life Financial (NYSE:SLF) (TSE:SLF) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The financial services provider reported $1.20 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.90 by $0.30. Sun Life Financial had a return on equity of 16.86% and a net margin of 8.08%. As a group, research analysts forecast that Sun Life Financial Inc. will post 5.19 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Sun Life Financial Cuts Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, February 26th were issued a $0.5876 dividend. This represents a $2.35 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.31%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, February 26th. Sun Life Financial’s payout ratio is 60.16%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have recently commented on the company. Cormark raised Sun Life Financial from a “hold” rating to a “moderate buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. National Bank Financial raised shares of Sun Life Financial from a “sector perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 15th. 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 research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, one has given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus 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.