1,001,122 Shares in Sun Life Financial Inc. $SLF Acquired by Polar Asset Management Partners Inc.

Polar Asset Management Partners Inc. bought a new stake in Sun Life Financial Inc. (NYSE:SLF) (TSE:SLF) in the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund bought 1,001,122 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $78,481,000. Sun Life Financial accounts for about 1.3% of Polar Asset Management Partners Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 8th biggest holding. Polar Asset Management Partners Inc. owned about 0.18% of Sun Life Financial as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Jupiter Topco LLC purchased a new position in Sun Life Financial during the second quarter worth approximately $5,774,000. Hsbc Holdings PLC acquired a new position in shares of Sun Life Financial in the 2nd quarter valued at $322,000. PDT Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Sun Life Financial during the 2nd quarter valued at $757,000. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board purchased a new stake in shares of Sun Life Financial during the 2nd quarter valued at $292,980,000. Finally, Legal & General Group Plc acquired a new stake in shares of Sun Life Financial during the 2nd quarter worth $280,312,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 52.26% of the company’s stock.

Sun Life Financial Trading Up 1.1%

Shares of NYSE SLF opened at $79.94 on Wednesday. Sun Life Financial Inc. has a 12-month low of $57.22 and a 12-month high of $84.38. The company has a market cap of $44.55 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.69 and a beta of 0.88. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $80.31 and a 200 day moving average price of $72.44.

Sun Life Financial (NYSE:SLF) (TSE:SLF) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 6th. The financial services provider reported $1.46 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.39 by $0.07. The company had revenue of $10.10 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $994.33 million. Sun Life Financial had a return on equity of 17.96% and a net margin of 7.66%. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Sun Life Financial Inc. will post 5.72 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Sun Life Financial Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 29th. Investors of record on Wednesday, August 26th will be issued a dividend of $0.96 per share. This represents a $3.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.8%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, August 26th. Sun Life Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 66.12%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages recently weighed in on SLF. TD Securities reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Sun Life Financial in a research report on Friday, August 7th. Scotiabank restated a “sector perform” rating on shares of Sun Life Financial in a research note on Monday, August 10th. Argus set a $81.00 price objective on Sun Life Financial in a report on Wednesday, June 10th. Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce reaffirmed a “neutral” rating on shares of Sun Life Financial in a research note on Friday, May 8th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Sun Life Financial in a report on Friday, May 8th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have given a Buy rating, five have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $96.33.

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.