Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. Sells 35,167 Shares of Sun Life Financial Inc. (NYSE:SLF)

Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. cut its holdings in Sun Life Financial Inc. (NYSE:SLF) (TSE:SLF) by 0.8% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 4,630,397 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 35,167 shares during the quarter. Sun Life Financial accounts for approximately 1.2% of Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd.’s holdings, making the stock its 19th largest position. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. owned approximately 0.74% of Sun Life Financial worth $274,581,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Human Investing LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Sun Life Financial during the fourth quarter valued at $26,000. Assetmark Inc. grew its stake in shares of 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 lifted its position in Sun Life Financial by 124.9% during the third quarter. Addison Advisors LLC now owns 650 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $38,000 after purchasing an additional 361 shares during the period. Asset Planning Inc purchased a new stake in Sun Life Financial in the fourth quarter worth approximately $40,000. Finally, BankPlus Trust Department bought a new stake in Sun Life Financial in the 4th quarter worth approximately $40,000. Institutional investors own 52.26% of the company’s stock.

Sun Life Financial Stock Performance

NYSE SLF opened at $54.08 on Wednesday. The business’s fifty day moving average is $57.24 and its 200 day moving average is $57.83. The company has a market capitalization of $30.98 billion, a PE ratio of 14.08, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 1.04. Sun Life Financial Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $46.41 and a fifty-two week high of $62.85.

Sun Life Financial (NYSE:SLF) (TSE:SLF) last announced its quarterly earnings data 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 net margin of 8.08% and a return on equity of 16.86%. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Sun Life Financial Inc. will post 5.19 EPS for the current year.

Sun Life Financial Cuts Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, February 26th will be issued a dividend of $0.5876 per share. This represents a $2.35 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.35%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, February 26th. Sun Life Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 60.16%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on SLF shares. Cormark upgraded Sun Life Financial from a “hold” rating to a “moderate buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. StockNews.com downgraded Sun Life Financial from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. Finally, National Bank Financial upgraded shares of Sun Life Financial from a “sector perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 15th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, one has issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Sun Life Financial presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy”.

Sun Life Financial Profile

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.