Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board Grows Stock Position in Sun Life Financial Inc. (NYSE:SLF)

Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board raised its holdings in shares of Sun Life Financial Inc. (NYSE:SLF - Free Report) TSE: SLF by 242.1% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 38,611 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 27,325 shares during the period. Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board's holdings in Sun Life Financial were worth $2,290,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Stifel Financial Corp raised its holdings in Sun Life Financial by 1.6% in the third quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 44,977 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $2,610,000 after buying an additional 722 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp lifted its position in Sun Life Financial by 0.8% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 39,478 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $2,291,000 after purchasing an additional 330 shares in the last quarter. MML Investors Services LLC purchased a new stake in Sun Life Financial in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $237,000. Barclays PLC raised its stake in Sun Life Financial by 61.3% during the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 5,907 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $343,000 after acquiring an additional 2,244 shares during the period. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in Sun Life Financial by 8.5% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,654,586 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $156,127,000 after purchasing an additional 207,832 shares in the last quarter. 52.26% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Sun Life Financial Stock Performance

Shares of Sun Life Financial stock traded down $0.11 on Friday, hitting $56.40. 505,515 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 683,760. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $55.85 and a 200 day simple moving average of $57.83. 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 capitalization of $32.19 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.69, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 0.87.

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

Sun Life Financial Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 26th were given a $0.5876 dividend. This represents a $2.35 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.17%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, February 26th. Sun Life Financial's dividend payout ratio is presently 60.16%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on SLF shares. Cormark raised shares of Sun Life Financial from a "hold" rating to a "moderate buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. National Bank Financial upgraded Sun Life Financial from a "sector perform" rating to an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 15th. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded Sun Life Financial from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, one has given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy".

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.