Savant Capital LLC Reduces Holdings in Sun Life Financial Inc. (NYSE:SLF)

Savant Capital LLC trimmed its holdings in shares of Sun Life Financial Inc. (NYSE:SLF) (TSE:SLF) by 11.5% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 6,984 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 906 shares during the period. Savant Capital LLC’s holdings in Sun Life Financial were worth $414,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of SLF. Creative Planning increased its stake in shares of Sun Life Financial by 1.2% during the 3rd quarter. Creative Planning now owns 48,558 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,817,000 after purchasing an additional 590 shares in the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its position in Sun Life Financial by 123.7% during the third quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 7,661 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $444,000 after acquiring an additional 4,237 shares during the last quarter. Signaturefd LLC boosted its position in Sun Life Financial by 5.6% during the third quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 25,319 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,469,000 after acquiring an additional 1,348 shares during the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in Sun Life Financial during the third quarter worth approximately $963,000. Finally, JCIC Asset Management Inc. boosted its position in Sun Life Financial by 4.3% during the third quarter. JCIC Asset Management Inc. now owns 106,346 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $6,168,000 after acquiring an additional 4,390 shares during the last quarter. 52.26% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Sun Life Financial Stock Down 0.2 %

Shares of SLF opened at $55.17 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $34.65 billion, a PE ratio of 12.29, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 1.03. The company’s fifty day moving average is $58.78 and its two-hundred day moving average is $57.18. Sun Life Financial Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $46.41 and a fifty-two week high of $62.85.

Sun Life Financial (NYSE:SLF) (TSE:SLF) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The financial services provider reported $1.20 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.90 by $0.30. Sun Life Financial had a net margin of 7.32% and a return on equity of 17.44%. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Sun Life Financial Inc. will post 4.76 earnings per share for the current year.

Sun Life Financial Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 26th will be issued a dividend of $0.5876 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, February 26th. This represents a $2.35 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.26%. Sun Life Financial’s payout ratio is 57.46%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on SLF. StockNews.com lowered shares of Sun Life Financial from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. National Bank Financial upgraded shares of Sun Life Financial from a “sector perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 15th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, two have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy”.

About Sun Life Financial

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.