Sun Life Financial Inc. (NYSE:SLF) Position Lessened by Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership

Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership reduced its stake in shares of Sun Life Financial Inc. (NYSE:SLF) (TSE:SLF) by 46.4% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 801,370 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 693,290 shares during the quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership owned about 0.13% of Sun Life Financial worth $47,523,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Intrust Bank NA boosted its holdings in shares of Sun Life Financial by 22.9% during the fourth quarter. Intrust Bank NA now owns 5,074 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $301,000 after acquiring an additional 944 shares during the period. Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC boosted its stake in Sun Life Financial by 3.7% during the 4th quarter. Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC now owns 11,763 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $698,000 after purchasing an additional 423 shares during the period. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA grew its position in 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 worth $19,328,000 after purchasing an additional 27,760 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Sun Life Financial in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $382,176,000. Finally, Korea Investment CORP raised its holdings in shares of Sun Life Financial by 10.8% during the fourth quarter. Korea Investment CORP now owns 426,705 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $25,323,000 after buying an additional 41,570 shares during the last quarter. 52.26% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Sun Life Financial Price Performance

NYSE SLF opened at $58.11 on Wednesday. Sun Life Financial Inc. has a 12 month low of $46.41 and a 12 month high of $62.85. The firm has a market capitalization of $33.17 billion, a PE ratio of 15.13, a P/E/G ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 1.04. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $56.64 and its 200 day simple moving average is $58.00.

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 (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%. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Sun Life Financial Inc. will post 5.19 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Sun Life Financial Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, February 26th were given a $0.5876 dividend. This represents a $2.35 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.04%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, February 26th. Sun Life Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 60.16%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms recently commented on SLF. StockNews.com cut Sun Life Financial from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Cormark raised Sun Life Financial from a “hold” rating to a “moderate buy” rating in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, 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. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, one has issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Sun Life Financial presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy”.

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.