Sun Life Financial Inc. (NYSE:SLF) Shares Purchased by Bank of New York Mellon Corp

Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its holdings in Sun Life Financial Inc. (NYSE:SLF) (TSE:SLF) by 5.7% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 591,310 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 32,048 shares during the quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp owned 0.10% of Sun Life Financial worth $33,858,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. GeoWealth Management LLC increased its position in Sun Life Financial by 4,657.1% during the 4th quarter. GeoWealth Management LLC now owns 999 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $59,000 after purchasing an additional 978 shares in the last quarter. CX Institutional purchased a new stake in Sun Life Financial during the 1st quarter worth about $109,000. Blue Trust Inc. increased its position in Sun Life Financial by 7.6% during the 1st quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 3,437 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $197,000 after purchasing an additional 243 shares in the last quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC purchased a new stake in Sun Life Financial during the 1st quarter worth about $200,000. Finally, Grimes & Company Inc. grew its holdings in Sun Life Financial by 17.2% in the 1st quarter. Grimes & Company Inc. now owns 4,030 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $231,000 after buying an additional 590 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 52.26% of the company’s stock.

Sun Life Financial Trading Down 1.1%

Shares of NYSE SLF opened at $62.06 on Wednesday. Sun Life Financial Inc. has a one year low of $46.41 and a one year high of $66.81. The firm has a market capitalization of $34.98 billion, a PE ratio of 15.79, a PEG ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 0.91. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $63.84 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $59.46.

Sun Life Financial (NYSE:SLF) (TSE:SLF) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 8th. The financial services provider reported $1.27 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.22 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $7.91 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates 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 period in the previous year, the company earned $1.40 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Sun Life Financial Inc. will post 5.19 EPS for the current year.

Sun Life Financial Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 30th. Investors of record on Wednesday, May 28th were issued a $0.6332 dividend. This is a positive change from Sun Life Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.59. This represents a $2.53 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.08%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, May 28th. Sun Life Financial’s payout ratio is 64.89%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

SLF has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Scotiabank reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Sun Life Financial in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their target price on Sun Life Financial from $82.00 to $88.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, May 12th. BMO Capital Markets reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Sun Life Financial in a research report on Monday, May 12th. Finally, Barclays lowered Sun Life Financial from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating in a research report on Monday, July 7th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $88.00.

About Sun Life Financial

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.