Sun Life Financial Inc. (NYSE:SLF) Shares Sold by Value Partners Investments Inc.

Value Partners Investments Inc. decreased its stake in shares of Sun Life Financial Inc. (NYSE:SLF - Free Report) TSE: SLF by 91.1% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 101,634 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 1,040,456 shares during the period. Sun Life Financial comprises about 0.2% of Value Partners Investments Inc.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its 5th biggest holding. Value Partners Investments Inc.'s holdings in Sun Life Financial were worth $6,031,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Private Advisor Group LLC grew its stake in Sun Life Financial by 2.1% in the 4th quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 8,643 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $513,000 after buying an additional 181 shares during the last quarter. Checchi Capital Advisers LLC lifted its holdings in Sun Life Financial by 5.4% during the 4th quarter. Checchi Capital Advisers LLC now owns 3,719 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $221,000 after purchasing an additional 192 shares during the last quarter. Erste Asset Management GmbH boosted its stake in Sun Life Financial by 0.7% in the 4th quarter. Erste Asset Management GmbH now owns 28,400 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,693,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares during the period. Triasima Portfolio Management inc. increased its position in Sun Life Financial by 0.5% during the 4th quarter. Triasima Portfolio Management inc. now owns 47,900 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $2,843,000 after buying an additional 250 shares during the period. Finally, Five Oceans Advisors boosted its position in shares of Sun Life Financial by 8.1% in the fourth quarter. Five Oceans Advisors now owns 3,875 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $230,000 after acquiring an additional 292 shares during the period. 52.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Sun Life Financial Trading Down 0.2 %

NYSE SLF traded down $0.11 during trading on Friday, hitting $56.40. 505,515 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 683,720. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $55.85 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $57.83. Sun Life Financial Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $46.41 and a fifty-two week high of $62.85. The company has a market cap of $32.19 billion, a PE ratio of 14.69, a P/E/G 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 for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.90 by $0.30. Sun Life Financial had a net margin of 8.08% and a return on equity of 16.86%. Analysts forecast that Sun Life Financial Inc. will post 5.19 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Sun Life Financial Cuts Dividend

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

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

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.