Principal Financial Group Inc. Acquires 6,000 Shares of Sun Life Financial Inc. (NYSE:SLF)

Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Sun Life Financial Inc. (NYSE:SLF - Free Report) TSE: SLF by 34.0% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 23,633 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 6,000 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc.'s holdings in Sun Life Financial were worth $1,403,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in SLF. Triasima Portfolio Management inc. boosted its position in shares of Sun Life Financial by 0.5% in the fourth quarter. Triasima Portfolio Management inc. now owns 47,900 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $2,843,000 after acquiring an additional 250 shares during the period. Five Oceans Advisors boosted its position in shares of Sun Life Financial by 8.1% in the fourth quarter. Five Oceans Advisors now owns 3,875 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $230,000 after acquiring an additional 292 shares during the period. State Street Corp boosted its position in shares of Sun Life Financial by 0.8% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 39,478 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $2,291,000 after acquiring an additional 330 shares during the period. Addison Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Sun Life Financial by 124.9% during the 3rd quarter. Addison Advisors LLC now owns 650 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $38,000 after acquiring an additional 361 shares during the period. Finally, Louisbourg Investments Inc. lifted its position in shares of Sun Life Financial by 49.9% during the 4th quarter. Louisbourg Investments Inc. now owns 1,252 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $74,000 after acquiring an additional 417 shares during the period. 52.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on the company. StockNews.com downgraded Sun Life Financial from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Cormark upgraded Sun Life Financial from a "hold" rating to a "moderate buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, National Bank Financial upgraded Sun Life Financial from a "sector perform" rating to an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 15th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, one has issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy".

Sun Life Financial Trading Up 0.7 %

NYSE SLF traded up $0.39 on Friday, hitting $55.62. 331,402 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 798,425. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $57.45 and a 200-day moving average of $57.79. Sun Life Financial Inc. has a 52 week low of $46.41 and a 52 week high of $62.85. The stock has a market cap of $31.86 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.48, a P/E/G ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 1.04.

Sun Life Financial (NYSE:SLF - Get Free Report) TSE: SLF last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The financial services provider reported $1.20 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.90 by $0.30. Sun Life Financial had a return on equity of 16.86% and a net margin of 8.08%. As a group, analysts predict that Sun Life Financial Inc. will post 5.19 earnings per share for the current year.

Sun Life Financial Cuts Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 26th will be paid a $0.5876 dividend. This represents a $2.35 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.23%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, February 26th. Sun Life Financial's payout ratio is 60.16%.

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.