Sun Life Financial (NYSE:SLF) Sees Unusually-High Trading Volume - What's Next?

Sun Life Financial Inc. (NYSE:SLF - Get Free Report) TSE: SLF shares saw strong trading volume on Monday . 5,367,781 shares were traded during mid-day trading, an increase of 731% from the previous session's volume of 645,615 shares.The stock last traded at $55.35 and had previously closed at $54.61.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

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

Sun Life Financial Price Performance

The business has a fifty day moving average of $57.97 and a 200-day moving average of $57.58. The stock has a market capitalization of $31.45 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.29, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 1.03.

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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 (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates 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, research analysts anticipate that Sun Life Financial Inc. will post 5.19 EPS for the current year.

Sun Life Financial Cuts Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 26th will be given a $0.5876 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, February 26th. This represents a $2.35 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.28%. Sun Life Financial's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 60.16%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Sun Life Financial

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Polar Asset Management Partners Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Sun Life Financial in the 4th quarter valued at $1,648,000. Vise Technologies Inc. boosted its position in shares of Sun Life Financial by 106.0% in the 4th quarter. Vise Technologies Inc. now owns 8,778 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $521,000 after purchasing an additional 4,516 shares during the period. BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp boosted its position in shares of Sun Life Financial by 19.8% in the 4th quarter. BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp now owns 1,898,866 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $112,602,000 after purchasing an additional 313,176 shares during the period. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC boosted its position in shares of Sun Life Financial by 9.8% in the 4th quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 1,235,884 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $73,337,000 after purchasing an additional 110,780 shares during the period. Finally, Tidal Investments LLC boosted its position in Sun Life Financial by 4.5% during the 4th quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 5,147 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $305,000 after acquiring an additional 222 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 52.26% of the company's stock.

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.