Fiera Capital Corp Sells 79,956 Shares of Sun Life Financial Inc. $SLF

Fiera Capital Corp reduced its holdings in shares of Sun Life Financial Inc. (NYSE:SLF) (TSE:SLF) by 9.3% during the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 775,396 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 79,956 shares during the quarter. Fiera Capital Corp owned approximately 0.14% of Sun Life Financial worth $51,562,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Brighton Jones LLC bought a new stake in shares of Sun Life Financial during the 4th quarter worth $244,000. Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its holdings in Sun Life Financial by 12.3% during the first quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 26,533 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,518,000 after buying an additional 2,900 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its position in Sun Life Financial by 5.7% in the first quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 591,310 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $33,858,000 after acquiring an additional 32,048 shares during the period. Cerity Partners LLC grew its position in shares of Sun Life Financial by 4.3% during the 1st quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 24,889 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,425,000 after acquiring an additional 1,022 shares during the period. Finally, Ballentine Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Sun Life Financial in the 1st quarter worth approximately $263,000. Institutional investors own 52.26% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have weighed in on the company. Barclays reissued an “underweight” rating on shares of Sun Life Financial in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. UBS Group started coverage on Sun Life Financial in a report on Thursday, October 16th. They issued a “neutral” rating for the company. Royal Bank Of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $84.00 price objective on shares of Sun Life Financial in a research note on Monday. Argus upgraded shares of Sun Life Financial to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 4th. Finally, TD Securities upgraded shares of Sun Life Financial from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 7th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have issued a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $86.50.

Sun Life Financial Trading Up 2.0%

Shares of NYSE:SLF opened at $59.12 on Thursday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $60.20 and a 200 day moving average of $61.34. The stock has a market cap of $33.01 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.63, a P/E/G ratio of 1.67 and a beta of 0.90. Sun Life Financial Inc. has a 12 month low of $52.44 and a 12 month high of $66.81.

Sun Life Financial (NYSE:SLF) (TSE:SLF) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 5th. The financial services provider reported $1.35 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.30 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $944.53 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $944.53 million. Sun Life Financial had a net margin of 7.59% and a return on equity of 17.21%. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.33 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that Sun Life Financial Inc. will post 5.19 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Sun Life Financial Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, December 31st. Investors of record on Wednesday, November 26th will be given a dividend of $0.92 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, November 26th. This is a positive change from Sun Life Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.64. This represents a $3.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.2%. Sun Life Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 69.41%.

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.