Harvest Portfolios Group Inc. Has $3.84 Million Holdings in Sun Life Financial Inc. $SLF

Harvest Portfolios Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Sun Life Financial Inc. (NYSE:SLF) (TSE:SLF) by 18.9% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 63,931 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 10,177 shares during the period. Harvest Portfolios Group Inc.’s holdings in Sun Life Financial were worth $3,839,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of SLF. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Sun Life Financial in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $362,886,000. Picton Mahoney Asset Management bought a new position in shares of Sun Life Financial during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $87,660,000. Intact Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Sun Life Financial by 226.8% in the third quarter. Intact Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,270,947 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $76,327,000 after purchasing an additional 882,070 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Sun Life Financial by 3.4% in the second quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 25,422,211 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,691,568,000 after purchasing an additional 827,119 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Public Sector Pension Investment Board lifted its position in shares of Sun Life Financial by 1,441.6% in the second quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 854,747 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $56,760,000 after purchasing an additional 799,300 shares in the last quarter. 52.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Sun Life Financial Stock Up 0.3%

SLF opened at $65.56 on Friday. Sun Life Financial Inc. has a 12-month low of $52.44 and a 12-month high of $69.67. The business has a 50 day moving average of $63.98 and a 200-day moving average of $61.13. The stock has a market cap of $36.31 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.90 and a beta of 0.88.

Sun Life Financial (NYSE:SLF) (TSE:SLF) last posted its quarterly 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 return on equity of 17.76% and a net margin of 8.48%.The business had revenue of $973.53 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $973.53 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.68 EPS. As a group, analysts expect that Sun Life Financial Inc. will post 5.19 earnings per share for the current year.

Sun Life Financial Announces Dividend

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce reiterated a “neutral” rating on shares of Sun Life Financial in a research note on Thursday, January 8th. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Sun Life Financial in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. Wall Street Zen upgraded Sun Life Financial from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday. National Bank Financial reissued a “sector perform” rating on shares of Sun Life Financial in a research report on Thursday, November 6th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Sun Life Financial in a research report on Friday, February 13th. One equities research 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 issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average 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.