Norges Bank Purchases Shares of 6,376,216 Sun Life Financial Inc. $SLF

Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Sun Life Financial Inc. (NYSE:SLF) (TSE:SLF) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor purchased 6,376,216 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $398,037,000.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC raised its holdings in Sun Life Financial by 68.4% in the 4th quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 411 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 167 shares during the period. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in Sun Life Financial by 184.1% in the 3rd quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 588 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $35,000 after acquiring an additional 381 shares during the period. Westside Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in Sun Life Financial by 38.6% in the 3rd quarter. Westside Investment Management Inc. now owns 801 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $48,000 after acquiring an additional 223 shares during the period. LOM Asset Management Ltd bought a new position in Sun Life Financial in the 4th quarter valued at about $53,000. Finally, Triumph Capital Management bought a new position in Sun Life Financial in the 3rd quarter valued at about $64,000. 52.26% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Sun Life Financial Trading Down 1.0%

NYSE SLF opened at $71.08 on Tuesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $39.38 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.32 and a beta of 0.91. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $68.63 and its 200 day simple moving average is $64.69. Sun Life Financial Inc. has a 1 year low of $56.22 and a 1 year high of $74.16.

Sun Life Financial (NYSE:SLF) (TSE:SLF) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The financial services provider reported $1.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.35 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $6.41 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $925.99 million. Sun Life Financial had a net margin of 7.85% and a return on equity of 17.80%. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.82 EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Sun Life Financial Inc. will post 5.74 earnings per share for the current year.

Sun Life Financial Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Investors of record on Wednesday, May 27th will be given a dividend of $0.96 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, May 27th. This represents a $3.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.4%. This is a positive change from Sun Life Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.92. Sun Life Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 72.68%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

SLF has been the topic of several research analyst reports. TD Securities reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Sun Life Financial in a report on Thursday, May 7th. BMO Capital Markets restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Sun Life Financial in a research report on Friday, May 8th. National Bank Financial upgraded shares of Sun Life Financial from a “sector perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, April 24th. Evercore restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Sun Life Financial in a research report on Thursday, February 19th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating on shares of Sun Life Financial in a research report on Friday, February 13th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have given a Buy rating, four have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Sun Life Financial presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $86.50.

Sun Life Financial Profile

Sun Life Financial Inc, founded in 1865 and headquartered in Toronto, Ontario, is an international financial services organization that provides a range of insurance, wealth management and asset management solutions. The company serves individual and institutional clients, offering products designed to protect against life and health risks, help clients save for retirement, and manage investments on behalf of customers and third parties.

Core business activities include life and health insurance, group benefits for employers, retirement and pension products, and wealth management services such as mutual funds and segregated fund solutions.