Sanctuary Advisors LLC Buys New Position in Sun Life Financial Inc. (NYSE:SLF)

Sanctuary Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Sun Life Financial Inc. (NYSE:SLF - Free Report) TSE: SLF during the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund bought 14,350 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $878,000.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Mackenzie Financial Corp raised its holdings in Sun Life Financial by 2.9% during the second quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 14,703,533 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $721,042,000 after purchasing an additional 407,913 shares during the last quarter. 1832 Asset Management L.P. raised its position in shares of Sun Life Financial by 5.1% in the second quarter. 1832 Asset Management L.P. now owns 10,216,206 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $500,492,000 after buying an additional 499,009 shares during the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company lifted its stake in shares of Sun Life Financial by 7.6% during the third quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 9,256,384 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $537,288,000 after buying an additional 654,404 shares during the period. Toronto Dominion Bank grew its stake in Sun Life Financial by 5.0% in the 2nd quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank now owns 6,975,205 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $341,715,000 after acquiring an additional 332,641 shares during the period. Finally, CIBC Asset Management Inc raised its holdings in Sun Life Financial by 1.3% in the 3rd quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 6,488,668 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $377,311,000 after acquiring an additional 81,261 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 52.26% of the company's stock.

Sun Life Financial Stock Up 0.6 %

Shares of SLF traded up $0.34 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $59.26. 539,869 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 672,604. The firm has a market cap of $34.09 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.20, a P/E/G ratio of 1.55 and a beta of 1.02. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $59.26 and a 200 day simple moving average of $54.62. Sun Life Financial Inc. has a 12-month low of $46.41 and a 12-month high of $62.85.

Sun Life Financial Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, November 27th will be paid a dividend of $0.621 per share. This is a boost from Sun Life Financial's previous quarterly dividend of $0.59. This represents a $2.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.19%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, November 27th. Sun Life Financial's dividend payout ratio is 55.23%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have commented on SLF shares. StockNews.com cut Sun Life Financial from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, November 19th. Barclays assumed coverage on Sun Life Financial in a report on Thursday, September 5th. They set an "equal weight" rating for the company.

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.