V Square Quantitative Management LLC Buys 5,458 Shares of Sun Life Financial Inc. (NYSE:SLF)

V Square Quantitative Management LLC raised its position in Sun Life Financial Inc. (NYSE:SLF - Free Report) TSE: SLF by 28.1% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 24,866 shares of the financial services provider's stock after buying an additional 5,458 shares during the quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC's holdings in Sun Life Financial were worth $1,476,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in SLF. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company grew its position in shares of Sun Life Financial by 7.6% in 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 purchasing an additional 654,404 shares in the last quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc grew its position in shares of Sun Life Financial by 1.3% in the third quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 6,488,668 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $377,311,000 after purchasing an additional 81,261 shares in the last quarter. National Bank of Canada FI grew its position in shares of Sun Life Financial by 28.2% in the third quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 5,837,298 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $338,621,000 after purchasing an additional 1,284,556 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC grew its position in shares of Sun Life Financial by 5.2% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 5,189,939 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $301,047,000 after purchasing an additional 257,178 shares in the last quarter. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its position in shares of Sun Life Financial by 1.2% in the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 2,841,712 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $164,876,000 after purchasing an additional 34,072 shares in the last quarter. 52.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Sun Life Financial Stock Performance

Sun Life Financial stock traded up $0.45 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $55.58. 705,433 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 609,159. Sun Life Financial Inc. has a 52-week low of $46.41 and a 52-week high of $62.85. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $58.65 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $57.28. The company has a market cap of $34.91 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.38, a PEG ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 1.03.

Sun Life Financial (NYSE:SLF - Get Free Report) TSE: SLF last issued its quarterly 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 17.44% and a net margin of 7.32%. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Sun Life Financial Inc. will post 4.76 earnings per share for the current year.

Sun Life Financial Cuts Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, February 26th will be paid a dividend of $0.5876 per share. This represents a $2.35 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.23%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, February 26th. Sun Life Financial's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 57.46%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

SLF has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. StockNews.com cut 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 research report on Wednesday, January 15th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, two have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently 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.