Korea Investment CORP Has $33.08 Million Stock Holdings in Sun Life Financial Inc. $SLF

Korea Investment CORP lifted its holdings in shares of Sun Life Financial Inc. (NYSE:SLF) (TSE:SLF) by 18.3% in the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 550,700 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 85,356 shares during the period. Korea Investment CORP owned about 0.10% of Sun Life Financial worth $33,076,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other large investors have also bought and sold shares of SLF. Munich Reinsurance Co Stock Corp in Munich bought a new position in Sun Life Financial in the third quarter valued at about $2,117,000. First Trust Advisors LP boosted its stake in shares of Sun Life Financial by 7.3% in the 3rd quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 708,992 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $42,561,000 after purchasing an additional 48,105 shares in the last quarter. Guardian Capital LP grew its holdings in shares of Sun Life Financial by 44.2% during the 3rd quarter. Guardian Capital LP now owns 452,127 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $27,156,000 after purchasing an additional 138,548 shares during the last quarter. Orion Porfolio Solutions LLC increased its position in Sun Life Financial by 7.8% during the 3rd quarter. Orion Porfolio Solutions LLC now owns 18,840 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,131,000 after purchasing an additional 1,364 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its stake in Sun Life Financial by 1.4% in the 3rd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,639,801 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $98,426,000 after purchasing an additional 23,102 shares during the last quarter. 52.26% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have weighed in on SLF. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Sun Life Financial from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Sunday. TD Securities restated a “buy” rating on shares of Sun Life Financial in a research report on Thursday, February 12th. Barclays reaffirmed an “underweight” rating on shares of Sun Life Financial in a report on Thursday, January 8th. BMO Capital Markets reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Sun Life Financial in a research note on Friday, February 13th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating on shares of Sun Life Financial in a report on Friday, February 13th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have given a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $86.50.

Sun Life Financial Price Performance

Sun Life Financial stock opened at $63.44 on Tuesday. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $64.26 and its 200 day moving average is $61.43. Sun Life Financial Inc. has a one year low of $52.44 and a one year high of $69.67. The firm has a market cap of $35.14 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.42 and a beta of 0.87.

Sun Life Financial (NYSE:SLF) (TSE:SLF) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 11th. The financial services provider reported $1.41 earnings per share 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 during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $973.53 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.68 EPS. Equities analysts anticipate that Sun Life Financial Inc. will post 5.19 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Sun Life Financial Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, February 25th will be given a dividend of $0.92 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, February 25th. This represents a $3.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.8%. Sun Life Financial’s dividend payout ratio is 61.36%.

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.