HAP Trading LLC Sells 8,000 Shares of Sun Life Financial Inc. $SLF

HAP Trading LLC lessened its position in shares of Sun Life Financial Inc. (NYSE:SLF) (TSE:SLF) by 34.8% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 15,000 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 8,000 shares during the period. HAP Trading LLC’s holdings in Sun Life Financial were worth $997,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Westside Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Sun Life Financial by 62.8% during the 2nd quarter. Westside Investment Management Inc. now owns 578 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $38,000 after purchasing an additional 223 shares during the last quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC grew 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 buying an additional 381 shares in the last quarter. Tobam bought a new position in Sun Life Financial during the 2nd quarter worth $44,000. Addison Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Sun Life Financial by 48.8% during the second quarter. Addison Advisors LLC now owns 704 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $47,000 after buying an additional 231 shares in the last quarter. Finally, MAI Capital Management lifted its holdings in shares of Sun Life Financial by 121.8% during the second quarter. MAI Capital Management now owns 896 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $60,000 after buying an additional 492 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 52.26% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently commented on the stock. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Sun Life Financial from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, February 28th. Scotiabank restated a “sector perform” rating on shares of Sun Life Financial in a research report on Thursday, February 5th. Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce reaffirmed a “neutral” rating on shares of Sun Life Financial in a report on Thursday, January 8th. TD Securities reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Sun Life Financial in a research note on Thursday, February 12th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reissued an “outperform” 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, four have assigned a Buy rating, five have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Sun Life Financial currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $86.50.

Sun Life Financial Trading Up 1.3%

Shares of NYSE:SLF opened at $65.47 on Thursday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $64.14 and a 200-day moving average of $61.28. Sun Life Financial Inc. has a 12 month low of $52.44 and a 12 month high of $69.67. The stock has a market capitalization of $36.26 billion, a PE ratio of 14.88 and a beta of 0.87.

Sun Life Financial (NYSE:SLF) (TSE:SLF) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 11th. The financial services provider reported $1.41 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.35 by $0.06. Sun Life Financial had a net margin of 8.48% and a return on equity of 17.76%. The business had revenue of $973.53 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $973.53 million. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.68 earnings per share. On average, research analysts predict that Sun Life Financial Inc. will post 5.19 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Sun Life Financial Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 25th will be given a dividend of $0.92 per share. This represents a $3.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.6%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, February 25th. Sun Life Financial’s dividend payout ratio is currently 60.91%.

Sun Life Financial Company 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.