Lorne Steinberg Wealth Management Inc. Purchases 2,757 Shares of Sun Life Financial Inc. (NYSE:SLF)

Lorne Steinberg Wealth Management Inc. raised its position in Sun Life Financial Inc. (NYSE:SLF) (TSE:SLF) by 2.6% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 106,878 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 2,757 shares during the quarter. Sun Life Financial accounts for 1.9% of Lorne Steinberg Wealth Management Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 25th biggest holding. Lorne Steinberg Wealth Management Inc.’s holdings in Sun Life Financial were worth $5,544,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Headinvest LLC acquired a new position in shares of Sun Life Financial in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $39,000. RIA Advisory Group LLC acquired a new stake in Sun Life Financial in the fourth quarter valued at about $39,000. Legacy Financial Group LLC bought a new position in Sun Life Financial in the third quarter valued at about $40,000. HHM Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Sun Life Financial during the third quarter worth about $62,000. Finally, Pacifica Partners Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Sun Life Financial by 83.5% in the fourth quarter. Pacifica Partners Inc. now owns 1,288 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $66,000 after acquiring an additional 586 shares during the last quarter. 52.26% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on shares of Sun Life Financial in a research report on Thursday, February 22nd. They issued a “buy” rating for the company.

Sun Life Financial Stock Performance

SLF traded down $0.16 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $51.69. 95,469 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 603,549. Sun Life Financial Inc. has a one year low of $44.57 and a one year high of $55.46. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $53.54 and its 200 day moving average price is $51.32. The company has a market cap of $30.11 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.32, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.27 and a beta of 1.01.

Sun Life Financial (NYSE:SLF) (TSE:SLF) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 7th. The financial services provider reported $1.23 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.17 by $0.06. Sun Life Financial had a return on equity of 17.30% and a net margin of 7.79%. The business had revenue of $13.73 billion during the quarter. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Sun Life Financial Inc. will post 5.06 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Sun Life Financial Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 28th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, February 28th were paid a dividend of $0.581 per share. This represents a $2.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.50%. This is a boost from Sun Life Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.56. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 27th. Sun Life Financial’s payout ratio is presently 59.79%.

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.