Ninepoint Partners LP Has $3.58 Million Stock Holdings in Sun Life Financial Inc. (NYSE:SLF)

Ninepoint Partners LP boosted its holdings in shares of Sun Life Financial Inc. (NYSE:SLF) (TSE:SLF) by 8.3% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 60,385 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 4,638 shares during the quarter. Sun Life Financial comprises 0.5% of Ninepoint Partners LP’s holdings, making the stock its 18th largest holding. Ninepoint Partners LP’s holdings in Sun Life Financial were worth $3,583,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company grew its holdings in Sun Life Financial by 7.6% during the 3rd quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 9,256,384 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $537,288,000 after acquiring an additional 654,404 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its holdings in shares of Sun Life Financial by 1.2% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 2,841,712 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $164,876,000 after buying an additional 34,072 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Sun Life Financial by 34.0% in the 4th quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 23,633 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,403,000 after buying an additional 6,000 shares during the period. CIBC Asset Management Inc grew its holdings in shares of Sun Life Financial by 10.8% in the 4th quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 7,192,059 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $427,712,000 after buying an additional 703,391 shares during the period. Finally, Sanctuary Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Sun Life Financial in the 3rd quarter valued at $878,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 52.26% of the company’s stock.

Sun Life Financial Trading Up 2.0 %

SLF opened at $55.40 on Friday. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $56.98 and its 200 day simple moving average is $57.81. Sun Life Financial Inc. has a 12 month low of $46.41 and a 12 month high of $62.85. The stock has a market capitalization of $31.74 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.43, a P/E/G ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 1.04.

Sun Life Financial (NYSE:SLF) (TSE:SLF) last issued its quarterly 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%. On average, equities 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 declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, February 26th will be given a dividend of $0.5876 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, February 26th. This represents a $2.35 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.24%. Sun Life Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 60.16%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

SLF has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Cormark raised shares of Sun Life Financial from a “hold” rating to a “moderate buy” rating in a report on Thursday, February 13th. StockNews.com cut shares of Sun Life Financial from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Finally, National Bank Financial raised shares of 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 assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently 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.