Scotia Capital Inc. Acquires 93,992 Shares of Sun Life Financial Inc. (NYSE:SLF)

Scotia Capital Inc. lifted its stake in Sun Life Financial Inc. (NYSE:SLF - Free Report) TSE: SLF by 3.3% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,974,065 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 93,992 shares during the period. Scotia Capital Inc. owned 0.47% of Sun Life Financial worth $176,273,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Norges Bank bought a new position in Sun Life Financial during the fourth quarter worth about $382,176,000. Intact Investment Management Inc. boosted its stake in Sun Life Financial by 295.5% during the 4th quarter. Intact Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,911,027 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $113,453,000 after acquiring an additional 1,427,815 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its holdings in Sun Life Financial by 2,071.4% during the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 1,350,751 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $80,160,000 after purchasing an additional 1,288,545 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Sun Life Financial by 30.6% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 3,467,275 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $210,080,000 after purchasing an additional 812,689 shares in the last quarter. Finally, CIBC Asset Management Inc raised its holdings in Sun Life Financial by 10.8% in the fourth quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 7,192,059 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $427,712,000 after purchasing an additional 703,391 shares during the period. 52.26% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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Sun Life Financial Stock Down 0.2 %

Shares of NYSE:SLF traded down $0.13 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $56.53. 103,897 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 680,389. The firm has a market cap of $32.27 billion, a PE ratio of 14.72, a P/E/G ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 0.87. Sun Life Financial Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $46.41 and a fifty-two week high of $62.85. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $56.04 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $57.87.

Sun Life Financial (NYSE:SLF - Get Free Report) TSE: SLF last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The financial services provider reported $1.20 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating 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 forecast that Sun Life Financial Inc. will post 5.19 earnings per share for the current year.

Sun Life Financial Cuts Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, February 26th were given a dividend of $0.5876 per share. This represents a $2.35 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.16%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, February 26th. Sun Life Financial's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 60.16%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

SLF has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. StockNews.com cut shares of Sun Life Financial from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. National Bank Financial upgraded Sun Life Financial from a "sector perform" rating to an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, January 15th. Finally, Cormark upgraded Sun Life Financial from a "hold" rating to a "moderate buy" rating in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, one has assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Sun Life Financial currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy".

Sun Life Financial Company 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.