TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. Increases Holdings in Sun Life Financial Inc. $SLF

TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. increased its stake in shares of Sun Life Financial Inc. (NYSE:SLF) (TSE:SLF) by 4.6% in the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 1,971,812 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 86,818 shares during the period. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. owned about 0.35% of Sun Life Financial worth $122,396,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Brighton Jones LLC bought a new position in Sun Life Financial during the fourth quarter valued at $244,000. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Sun Life Financial by 113.8% during the 1st quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 8,022 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $454,000 after buying an additional 4,270 shares in the last quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC bought a new position in Sun Life Financial in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $204,000. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC raised its holdings in Sun Life Financial by 2.2% during the 2nd quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 10,444 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $683,000 after acquiring an additional 224 shares during the period. Finally, Farther Finance Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Sun Life Financial by 295.7% during the 2nd quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 1,116 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $74,000 after purchasing an additional 834 shares during the period. 52.26% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Sun Life Financial Price Performance

Shares of SLF opened at $63.03 on Thursday. Sun Life Financial Inc. has a one year low of $52.44 and a one year high of $66.81. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $61.22 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $60.45. The firm has a market capitalization of $34.91 billion, a PE ratio of 16.76 and a beta of 0.87.

Sun Life Financial (NYSE:SLF) (TSE:SLF) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 5th. The financial services provider reported $1.35 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.30 by $0.05. Sun Life Financial had a return on equity of 16.93% and a net margin of 7.53%.The business had revenue of $944.53 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $944.53 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.33 earnings per share. Analysts expect that Sun Life Financial Inc. will post 5.19 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Sun Life Financial Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, December 31st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, November 26th were issued a $0.92 dividend. This represents a $3.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.8%. This is a boost from Sun Life Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.64. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, November 26th. Sun Life Financial’s dividend payout ratio is presently 69.68%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on SLF shares. TD Securities raised Sun Life Financial from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 7th. National Bankshares reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating on shares of Sun Life Financial in a report on Thursday, November 6th. Cibc Captl Mkts lowered Sun Life Financial from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 29th. Barclays reiterated an “underweight” rating on shares of Sun Life Financial in a research report on Thursday, January 8th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating and issued a $84.00 price target on shares of Sun Life Financial in a report on Monday, November 10th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have issued a Buy rating, seven have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Sun Life Financial currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target 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.