Aviva PLC Has $50.42 Million Stake in Sun Life Financial Inc. (NYSE:SLF)

Aviva PLC reduced its stake in Sun Life Financial Inc. (NYSE:SLF) (TSE:SLF) by 5.4% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 850,917 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 48,842 shares during the quarter. Aviva PLC’s holdings in Sun Life Financial were worth $50,422,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. BNP Paribas Financial Markets bought a new stake in shares of Sun Life Financial during the third quarter worth $594,000. Verition Fund Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Sun Life Financial in the third quarter worth $1,255,000. Benjamin Edwards Inc. acquired a new stake in Sun Life Financial in the third quarter valued at $219,000. Quantinno Capital Management LP raised its position in Sun Life Financial by 4.6% during the 3rd quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 78,102 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $4,532,000 after purchasing an additional 3,451 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Stifel Financial Corp grew its position in shares of Sun Life Financial by 1.6% in the 3rd quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 44,977 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,610,000 after buying an additional 722 shares during the last quarter. 52.26% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms recently commented on SLF. National Bank Financial raised Sun Life Financial from a “sector perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 15th. Cormark upgraded shares of Sun Life Financial from a “hold” rating to a “moderate buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, StockNews.com cut shares of 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 issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy”.

Sun Life Financial Price Performance

Shares of Sun Life Financial stock opened at $54.53 on Friday. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $56.56 and its 200 day moving average is $58.01. Sun Life Financial Inc. has a one year low of $46.41 and a one year high of $62.85. The firm has a market cap of $31.13 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.20, a PEG ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 1.04.

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, 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, sell-side analysts expect that Sun Life Financial Inc. will post 5.19 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Sun Life Financial Cuts Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, February 26th were issued a dividend of $0.5876 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, February 26th. This represents a $2.35 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.31%. Sun Life Financial’s dividend payout ratio is currently 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.