Sun Life Financial Inc. (NYSE:SLF) Position Boosted by Franklin Resources Inc.

Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its stake in Sun Life Financial Inc. (NYSE:SLF) (TSE:SLF) by 16.9% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 283,417 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 40,997 shares during the quarter. Franklin Resources Inc.’s holdings in Sun Life Financial were worth $16,807,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in SLF. Private Advisor Group LLC increased its position in Sun Life Financial by 2.1% in the 4th quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 8,643 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $513,000 after purchasing an additional 181 shares during the last quarter. Checchi Capital Advisers LLC grew its stake in shares of Sun Life Financial by 5.4% in the 4th quarter. Checchi Capital Advisers LLC now owns 3,719 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $221,000 after buying an additional 192 shares in the last quarter. Erste Asset Management GmbH increased its holdings in Sun Life Financial by 0.7% in the fourth quarter. Erste Asset Management GmbH now owns 28,400 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,693,000 after buying an additional 200 shares during the last quarter. Triasima Portfolio Management inc. raised its position in Sun Life Financial by 0.5% during the fourth quarter. Triasima Portfolio Management inc. now owns 47,900 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,843,000 after acquiring an additional 250 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Five Oceans Advisors lifted its stake in Sun Life Financial by 8.1% in the fourth quarter. Five Oceans Advisors now owns 3,875 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $230,000 after acquiring an additional 292 shares during the last quarter. 52.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Sun Life Financial Stock Down 1.2 %

NYSE:SLF opened at $53.80 on Tuesday. The company’s 50 day moving average is $56.45 and its 200-day moving average is $58.00. The firm has a market cap of $30.71 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.01, a P/E/G ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 0.87. Sun Life Financial Inc. has a 12 month low of $46.41 and a 12 month high of $62.85.

Sun Life Financial (NYSE:SLF) (TSE:SLF) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The financial services provider reported $1.20 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.90 by $0.30. Sun Life Financial had a net margin of 8.08% and a return on equity of 16.86%. Research analysts predict that Sun Life Financial Inc. will post 5.19 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Sun Life Financial Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 26th were paid a dividend of $0.5876 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, February 26th. This represents a $2.35 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.37%. Sun Life Financial’s payout ratio is 60.16%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

SLF has been the topic of several analyst reports. StockNews.com lowered shares of Sun Life Financial from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. Cormark raised shares of Sun Life Financial from a “hold” rating to a “moderate buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, National Bank Financial raised Sun Life Financial from a “sector perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 15th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, one has assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy”.

Sun Life Financial Company Profile

Sun Life Financial Inc, a financial services company, provides savings, retirement, and pension products worldwide. The company operates in five segments: Asset Management, Canada, U.S., Asia, and Corporate. It offers various insurance products, such as term and permanent life; personal health, which includes prescription drugs, dental, and vision care; critical illness; long-term care; and disability, as well as reinsurance.