Blue Trust Inc. Acquires 855 Shares of Sun Life Financial Inc. (NYSE:SLF)

Blue Trust Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Sun Life Financial Inc. (NYSE:SLF) (TSE:SLF) by 11.2% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 8,516 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 855 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc.’s holdings in Sun Life Financial were worth $494,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in SLF. Assetmark Inc. raised its position in Sun Life Financial by 2,747.4% in the third quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 541 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 522 shares during the period. Addison Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Sun Life Financial by 124.9% in the 3rd quarter. Addison Advisors LLC now owns 650 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $38,000 after purchasing an additional 361 shares during the period. Clean Yield Group purchased a new position in Sun Life Financial in the third quarter valued at approximately $39,000. Dixon Mitchell Investment Counsel Inc. bought a new position in Sun Life Financial during the fourth quarter valued at $45,000. Finally, Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB purchased a new stake in Sun Life Financial in the third quarter worth $51,000. 52.26% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

SLF has been the subject of several research reports. StockNews.com upgraded Sun Life Financial from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, January 27th. 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. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, three have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Sun Life Financial has a consensus rating of “Buy”.

Sun Life Financial Price Performance

Shares of SLF stock opened at $57.74 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $33.13 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.86, a PEG ratio of 1.60 and a beta of 1.03. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $59.61 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $56.53. Sun Life Financial Inc. has a 1 year low of $46.41 and a 1 year high of $62.85.

Sun Life Financial Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, November 27th were paid a $0.621 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, November 27th. This represents a $2.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.30%. This is an increase from Sun Life Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.59. Sun Life Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 57.46%.

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.