Cetera Investment Advisers Raises Stock Position in Sun Life Financial Inc. (NYSE:SLF)

Cetera Investment Advisers grew its stake in Sun Life Financial Inc. (NYSE:SLF) (TSE:SLF) by 21.6% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 62,856 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 11,161 shares during the quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers’ holdings in Sun Life Financial were worth $3,599,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of SLF. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC increased its position in shares of Sun Life Financial by 53.2% during the first quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC now owns 665 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $38,000 after buying an additional 231 shares during the period. Financial Gravity Asset Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Sun Life Financial during the 1st quarter worth approximately $55,000. GeoWealth Management LLC raised its position in shares of Sun Life Financial by 4,657.1% in the 4th quarter. GeoWealth Management LLC now owns 999 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $59,000 after acquiring an additional 978 shares in the last quarter. CX Institutional bought a new position in shares of Sun Life Financial in the 1st quarter worth approximately $109,000. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Sun Life Financial by 7.6% in the 1st quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 3,437 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $197,000 after purchasing an additional 243 shares during the period. 52.26% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Barclays cut Sun Life Financial from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating in a research note on Monday, July 7th. BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Sun Life Financial in a research report on Monday, May 12th. Scotiabank raised shares of Sun Life Financial to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 31st. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their price objective on shares of Sun Life Financial from $82.00 to $88.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, May 12th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $88.00.

Sun Life Financial Price Performance

SLF opened at $61.06 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $34.39 billion, a PE ratio of 15.54, a P/E/G ratio of 1.62 and a beta of 0.90. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $63.63 and a 200-day moving average price of $59.78. Sun Life Financial Inc. has a 1 year low of $46.41 and a 1 year high of $66.81.

Sun Life Financial (NYSE:SLF) (TSE:SLF) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 8th. The financial services provider reported $1.27 earnings per share 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 analyst estimates of $6.44 billion. Sun Life Financial had a net margin of 7.47% and a return on equity of 17.33%. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.40 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Sun Life Financial Inc. will post 5.19 EPS for the current year.

Sun Life Financial Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 30th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, May 28th were paid a dividend of $0.6332 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, May 28th. This represents a $2.53 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.1%. This is a positive change from Sun Life Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.59. Sun Life Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 64.89%.

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.