Beutel Goodman & Co Ltd. Sells 3,464,639 Shares of Sun Life Financial Inc. (NYSE:SLF)

Beutel Goodman & Co Ltd. lessened its holdings in Sun Life Financial Inc. (NYSE:SLF) (TSE:SLF) by 39.6% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 5,285,394 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 3,464,639 shares during the period. Sun Life Financial makes up 1.7% of Beutel Goodman & Co Ltd.’s portfolio, making the stock its 28th biggest position. Beutel Goodman & Co Ltd.’s holdings in Sun Life Financial were worth $313,661,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in SLF. Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC increased its stake in Sun Life Financial by 3.7% in the fourth quarter. Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC now owns 11,763 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $698,000 after acquiring an additional 423 shares during the period. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA grew its stake in shares of Sun Life Financial by 9.3% in the 4th quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA now owns 325,688 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $19,328,000 after purchasing an additional 27,760 shares during the period. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Sun Life Financial in the 4th quarter worth approximately $382,176,000. Korea Investment CORP lifted its position in shares of Sun Life Financial by 10.8% during the 4th quarter. Korea Investment CORP now owns 426,705 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $25,323,000 after buying an additional 41,570 shares during the period. Finally, Financial Counselors Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Sun Life Financial by 4.2% during the fourth quarter. Financial Counselors Inc. now owns 8,148 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $484,000 after acquiring an additional 325 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 52.26% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms recently issued reports on SLF. Cormark raised Sun Life Financial from a “hold” rating to a “moderate buy” rating in a report on Thursday, February 13th. National Bank Financial upgraded 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 Sun Life Financial from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Two investment 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 company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy”.

Sun Life Financial Stock Performance

NYSE:SLF opened at $56.64 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $56.69 and a 200 day simple moving average of $57.94. Sun Life Financial Inc. has a 52-week low of $46.41 and a 52-week high of $62.85. The company has a market cap of $32.33 billion, a PE ratio of 14.75, a PEG ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 1.04.

Sun Life Financial (NYSE:SLF) (TSE:SLF) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The financial services provider reported $1.20 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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, research analysts predict that Sun Life Financial Inc. will post 5.19 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Sun Life Financial Cuts Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, February 26th will be issued a $0.5876 dividend. This represents a $2.35 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.15%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, February 26th. Sun Life Financial’s payout ratio is 60.16%.

Sun Life Financial Company 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.