Beutel Goodman & Co Ltd. Sells 283,501 Shares of Sun Life Financial Inc. $SLF

Beutel Goodman & Co Ltd. trimmed its position in shares of Sun Life Financial Inc. (NYSE:SLF) (TSE:SLF) by 5.8% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 4,601,560 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 283,501 shares during the period. Sun Life Financial comprises 1.7% of Beutel Goodman & Co Ltd.’s holdings, making the stock its 29th biggest holding. Beutel Goodman & Co Ltd. owned approximately 0.82% of Sun Life Financial worth $305,567,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Brighton Jones LLC bought a new position in shares of Sun Life Financial during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $244,000. XTX Topco Ltd purchased a new position in Sun Life Financial during the 1st quarter valued at $469,000. Natixis Advisors LLC grew its position in Sun Life Financial by 0.6% in the 1st quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 48,211 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,761,000 after acquiring an additional 276 shares during the last quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. increased its stake in Sun Life Financial by 12.1% in the first quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. now owns 3,310 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $190,000 after purchasing an additional 357 shares during the period. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Sun Life Financial by 1.5% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 24,595,092 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,407,626,000 after purchasing an additional 361,596 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 52.26% of the company’s stock.

Sun Life Financial Price Performance

Shares of NYSE SLF opened at $57.72 on Friday. Sun Life Financial Inc. has a 1-year low of $52.44 and a 1-year high of $66.81. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $60.09 and a 200 day moving average price of $61.10. The stock has a market capitalization of $32.16 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.35 and a beta of 0.87.

Sun Life Financial (NYSE:SLF) (TSE:SLF) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, November 5th. The financial services provider reported $1.35 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.30 by $0.05. Sun Life Financial had a net margin of 7.53% and a return on equity of 16.93%. The business had revenue of $944.53 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $944.53 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.33 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Sun Life Financial Inc. will post 5.19 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Sun Life Financial Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, December 31st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, November 26th will be paid a $0.92 dividend. This represents a $3.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.4%. This is a positive change from Sun Life Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.64. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, November 26th. Sun Life Financial’s payout ratio is 69.68%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts recently commented on the stock. UBS Group started coverage on shares of Sun Life Financial in a research note on Thursday, October 16th. They issued a “neutral” rating on the stock. Cibc Captl Mkts downgraded shares of Sun Life Financial from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 29th. Royal Bank Of Canada reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating and set a $84.00 price target on shares of Sun Life Financial in a research note on Monday, November 10th. Morgan Stanley set a $89.00 price target on Sun Life Financial in a report on Tuesday, October 7th. Finally, National Bank Financial downgraded Sun Life Financial from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, August 7th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have assigned a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $86.50.

Sun Life Financial 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.