Sun Life Financial Inc. (NYSE:SLF) Shares Purchased by Value Partners Investments Inc.

Value Partners Investments Inc. increased its position in shares of Sun Life Financial Inc. (NYSE:SLF) (TSE:SLF) by 1,002.9% in the 1st quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 1,120,888 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,019,254 shares during the period. Sun Life Financial accounts for 5.5% of Value Partners Investments Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 3rd biggest position. Value Partners Investments Inc.’s holdings in Sun Life Financial were worth $64,216,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of SLF. Brighton Jones LLC acquired a new position in Sun Life Financial during the fourth quarter worth $244,000. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its holdings in Sun Life Financial by 34.0% during the fourth quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 23,633 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,403,000 after purchasing an additional 6,000 shares during the last quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC increased its position in Sun Life Financial by 5.2% during the fourth quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC now owns 15,090 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $870,000 after buying an additional 740 shares in the last quarter. Truist Financial Corp increased its position in Sun Life Financial by 8.7% during the fourth quarter. Truist Financial Corp now owns 7,838 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $465,000 after buying an additional 629 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Private Advisor Group LLC increased its position in Sun Life Financial by 2.1% during the fourth quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 8,643 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $513,000 after buying an additional 181 shares in the last quarter. 52.26% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

SLF has been the subject of several recent research reports. Scotiabank reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Sun Life Financial in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their price target on Sun Life Financial from $82.00 to $88.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, May 12th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Sun Life Financial in a research report on Monday, May 12th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $88.00.

Sun Life Financial Stock Down 0.3%

Shares of NYSE:SLF opened at $64.92 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $36.59 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.52, a P/E/G ratio of 1.76 and a beta of 0.92. Sun Life Financial Inc. has a 52 week low of $46.41 and a 52 week high of $65.56. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $62.31 and a 200-day simple moving average of $59.06.

Sun Life Financial (NYSE:SLF) (TSE:SLF) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 8th. The financial services provider reported $1.27 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.22 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $7.91 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.44 billion. Sun Life Financial had a return on equity of 17.33% and a net margin of 7.47%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.40 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts expect that Sun Life Financial Inc. will post 5.19 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Sun Life Financial Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, May 28th will be given a $0.6332 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, May 28th. This represents a $2.53 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.90%. This is an increase from Sun Life Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.59. Sun Life Financial’s payout ratio is currently 64.89%.

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.