Sun Life Financial Inc. $SLF Shares Sold by Montrusco Bolton Investments Inc.

Montrusco Bolton Investments Inc. cut its stake in Sun Life Financial Inc. (NYSE:SLF) (TSE:SLF) by 4.6% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 191,573 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 9,299 shares during the period. Montrusco Bolton Investments Inc.’s holdings in Sun Life Financial were worth $14,967,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Louisbourg Investments Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Sun Life Financial by 3.0% during the 1st quarter. Louisbourg Investments Inc. now owns 5,105 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $319,000 after purchasing an additional 150 shares during the last quarter. Plan A Wealth LLC lifted its stake in Sun Life Financial by 1.6% in the third quarter. Plan A Wealth LLC now owns 10,602 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $827,000 after purchasing an additional 171 shares during the last quarter. Candriam S.C.A. lifted its stake in Sun Life Financial by 1.8% in the first quarter. Candriam S.C.A. now owns 9,794 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $612,000 after purchasing an additional 177 shares during the last quarter. HB Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in Sun Life Financial by 4.7% during the first quarter. HB Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,158 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $260,000 after buying an additional 187 shares during the period. Finally, Sei Investments Co. boosted its position in Sun Life Financial by 3.5% during the first quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 5,788 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $362,000 after buying an additional 196 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 52.26% of the company’s stock.

Sun Life Financial Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE SLF traded up $0.60 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $77.94. 448,421 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 700,925. Sun Life Financial Inc. has a 12-month low of $57.22 and a 12-month high of $84.38. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $79.60 and a 200 day moving average price of $75.97. The firm has a market cap of $43.34 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.22, a P/E/G ratio of 1.92 and a beta of 0.89.

Sun Life Financial (NYSE:SLF) (TSE:SLF) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 6th. The financial services provider reported $1.46 earnings per share 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%. As a group, equities analysts expect that Sun Life Financial Inc. will post 5.74 earnings per share for the current year.

Sun Life Financial Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 29th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, August 26th were paid a dividend of C$0.96 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, August 26th. This represents a $3.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.9%. Sun Life Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 64.02%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently commented on SLF. Scotiabank reiterated a “sector perform” rating on shares of Sun Life Financial in a report on Monday, August 10th. TD Securities reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Sun Life Financial in a research note on Friday, August 7th. UBS Group restated a “neutral” rating on shares of Sun Life Financial in a report on Wednesday, September 2nd. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their price target on Sun Life Financial from $98.00 to $119.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Monday, August 10th. Finally, Argus raised their price target on Sun Life Financial from $81.00 to $88.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 3rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have issued a Buy rating, five have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $103.50.

Sun Life Financial Company Profile

Sun Life Financial Inc is a Canadian financial services company that provides insurance, wealth, and asset management products to individuals, businesses, and institutions. The company serves clients through operations in Canada, the United States, and several markets in Asia.

Its insurance offerings include life, health, dental, disability, long-term care, and critical illness coverage, as well as annuities and employee benefits. Sun Life also provides retirement savings and investment products, including mutual funds and other wealth solutions for individuals and workplace plan members.

Through its asset management businesses, Sun Life manages investments for institutional and retail clients across a range of asset classes.