Citigroup Inc. Increases Stock Position in Sun Life Financial Inc. (NYSE:SLF)

Citigroup Inc. boosted its stake in Sun Life Financial Inc. (NYSE:SLF) (TSE:SLF) by 13.0% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 178,807 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 20,610 shares during the quarter. Citigroup Inc.’s holdings in Sun Life Financial were worth $8,342,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of SLF. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Sun Life Financial in the 4th quarter worth approximately $290,398,000. Man Group plc grew its stake in shares of Sun Life Financial by 84.8% in the 4th quarter. Man Group plc now owns 3,141,398 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $145,716,000 after buying an additional 1,441,387 shares in the last quarter. National Bank of Canada FI grew its stake in shares of Sun Life Financial by 16.6% in the 1st quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 7,199,376 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $336,066,000 after buying an additional 1,027,026 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Sun Life Financial by 3.5% in the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 21,016,287 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $835,608,000 after buying an additional 703,122 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Canoe Financial LP purchased a new position in shares of Sun Life Financial in the 1st quarter worth $27,454,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 44.96% of the company’s stock.

Sun Life Financial Trading Up 0.7 %

Shares of SLF opened at $48.38 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $28.39 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.29, a P/E/G ratio of 1.27 and a beta of 1.01. Sun Life Financial Inc. has a 12-month low of $37.96 and a 12-month high of $53.21. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $50.65 and a 200-day moving average price of $49.19.

Sun Life Financial (NYSE:SLF) (TSE:SLF) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, August 8th. The financial services provider reported $1.17 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.17. The firm had revenue of $5.71 billion during the quarter. Sun Life Financial had a net margin of 7.28% and a return on equity of 15.10%. Analysts predict that Sun Life Financial Inc. will post 4.69 earnings per share for the current year.

Sun Life Financial Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 29th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, August 30th will be issued a dividend of $0.566 per share. This is an increase from Sun Life Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. This represents a $2.26 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.68%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, August 29th. Sun Life Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 60.71%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Credit Suisse Group lowered their price objective on Sun Life Financial from $79.00 to $77.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, August 10th. StockNews.com began coverage on Sun Life Financial in a research note on Thursday, August 17th. They issued a “hold” rating for the company. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada raised shares of Sun Life Financial from a “sector perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, May 15th.

Sun Life Financial Company Profile

Sun Life Financial Inc, a financial services company, provides savings, retirement, and pension products worldwide. It offers term and permanent life, as well as personal health, dental, critical illness, long-term care, and disability insurance products. The company provides financial advice, asset management, and investments related products.