TD Asset Management Inc. Reduces Stock Holdings in Sun Life Financial Inc. (NYSE:SLF)

TD Asset Management Inc. reduced its position in Sun Life Financial Inc. (NYSE:SLF) (TSE:SLF) by 0.1% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 15,725,658 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 9,202 shares during the quarter. Sun Life Financial makes up about 0.8% of TD Asset Management Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 26th largest position. TD Asset Management Inc. owned about 2.50% of Sun Life Financial worth $933,239,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company increased its holdings in Sun Life Financial by 7.6% in the 3rd quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 9,256,384 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $537,288,000 after acquiring an additional 654,404 shares during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its stake 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 worth $164,876,000 after purchasing an additional 34,072 shares in the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Sun Life Financial by 34.0% in the fourth quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 23,633 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,403,000 after purchasing an additional 6,000 shares during the period. CIBC Asset Management Inc raised its position in shares of 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 valued at $427,712,000 after purchasing an additional 703,391 shares during the period. Finally, Sanctuary Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Sun Life Financial during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $878,000. 52.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Sun Life Financial Trading Up 2.1 %

Sun Life Financial stock opened at $57.39 on Tuesday. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $56.80 and its 200 day simple moving average is $57.92. Sun Life Financial Inc. has a 1-year low of $46.41 and a 1-year high of $62.85. The firm has a market capitalization of $35.87 billion, a PE ratio of 14.94, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 1.04.

Sun Life Financial (NYSE:SLF) (TSE:SLF) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The financial services provider reported $1.20 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.90 by $0.30. Sun Life Financial had a net margin of 8.08% and a return on equity of 16.86%. Research analysts forecast 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 will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, February 26th will be given a dividend of $0.5876 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, February 26th. This represents a $2.35 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.10%. Sun Life Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 60.16%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

SLF has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. National Bank Financial raised shares of Sun Life Financial from a “sector perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 15th. Cormark upgraded Sun Life Financial from a “hold” rating to a “moderate buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded Sun Life Financial from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, one has assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus 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.