Sun Life Financial Inc. $SLF Shares Sold by JPMorgan Chase & Co.

JPMorgan Chase & Co. lessened its stake in Sun Life Financial Inc. (NYSE:SLF) (TSE:SLF) by 2.3% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,490,651 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 58,021 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. owned about 0.44% of Sun Life Financial worth $165,504,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in SLF. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Sun Life Financial by 3.4% during the second quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 25,422,211 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,691,568,000 after buying an additional 827,119 shares in the last quarter. 1832 Asset Management L.P. boosted its stake in shares of Sun Life Financial by 8.9% during the 1st quarter. 1832 Asset Management L.P. now owns 10,338,250 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $591,968,000 after acquiring an additional 846,735 shares in the last quarter. Federation des caisses Desjardins du Quebec grew its position in shares of Sun Life Financial by 5.2% during the 1st quarter. Federation des caisses Desjardins du Quebec now owns 6,748,255 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $385,740,000 after acquiring an additional 335,054 shares during the period. Bank of Nova Scotia increased its stake in shares of Sun Life Financial by 4.8% in the 1st quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia now owns 5,780,001 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $330,848,000 after purchasing an additional 266,732 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. raised its holdings in Sun Life Financial by 7.1% in the 1st quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. now owns 4,957,785 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $283,792,000 after purchasing an additional 327,388 shares during the period. 52.26% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Sun Life Financial Stock Performance

Shares of SLF stock opened at $58.70 on Thursday. Sun Life Financial Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $52.44 and a fifty-two week high of $66.81. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $60.26 and its two-hundred day moving average is $61.29. The firm has a market capitalization of $32.70 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.53, a PEG ratio of 1.67 and a beta of 0.90.

Sun Life Financial (NYSE:SLF) (TSE:SLF) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, November 5th. The financial services provider reported $1.35 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.30 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $944.53 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations 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 in the prior year, the business earned $2.33 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts forecast that Sun Life Financial Inc. will post 5.19 earnings per share for the current year.

Sun Life Financial Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, December 31st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, November 26th will be paid a $0.92 dividend. This is a positive change from Sun Life Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.64. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, November 26th. This represents a $3.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.3%. Sun Life Financial’s dividend payout ratio is 69.41%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have recently commented on the company. UBS Group started coverage on Sun Life Financial in a research report on Thursday, October 16th. They issued a “neutral” rating for the company. Scotiabank upgraded Sun Life Financial to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 31st. National Bank Financial lowered shares of Sun Life Financial from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, August 7th. Morgan Stanley set a $89.00 price objective on shares of Sun Life Financial in a research report on Tuesday, October 7th. Finally, Barclays reaffirmed an “underweight” rating on shares of Sun Life Financial in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have given a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Sun Life Financial presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $86.50.

About Sun Life Financial

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.