PNC Financial Services Group Inc. Increases Stake in Sun Life Financial Inc. $SLF

PNC Financial Services Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Sun Life Financial Inc. (NYSE:SLF) (TSE:SLF) by 159.6% during the 1st quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 56,013 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 34,437 shares during the quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc.’s holdings in Sun Life Financial were worth $3,504,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Cassaday & Co Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Sun Life Financial during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC grew its stake in Sun Life Financial by 68.4% in the 4th quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 411 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 167 shares in the last quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. bought a new stake in Sun Life Financial during the 4th quarter valued at $30,000. Sittner & Nelson LLC bought a new stake in Sun Life Financial during the 4th quarter valued at $33,000. Finally, Scarborough Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Sun Life Financial during the first quarter worth $33,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 52.26% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Barclays reiterated an “underweight” rating on shares of Sun Life Financial in a research report on Tuesday, July 7th. Evercore cut Sun Life Financial from an “outperform” rating to an “in-line” rating in a report on Monday, July 13th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Sun Life Financial from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Sunday. Scotiabank reiterated a “sector perform” rating on shares of Sun Life Financial in a research report on Wednesday, July 15th. Finally, TD Securities reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Sun Life Financial in a report on Thursday, May 7th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have issued a Buy rating, five have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Sun Life Financial currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $84.67.

Sun Life Financial Stock Performance

Shares of SLF stock opened at $84.09 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $46.87 billion, a PE ratio of 21.67 and a beta of 0.88. Sun Life Financial Inc. has a 52-week low of $56.22 and a 52-week high of $84.38. The business’s fifty day moving average is $77.34 and its 200 day moving average is $69.89.

Sun Life Financial (NYSE:SLF) (TSE:SLF) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The financial services provider reported $1.38 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.35 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $6.41 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $925.99 million. Sun Life Financial had a return on equity of 17.80% and a net margin of 7.85%.During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.82 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Sun Life Financial Inc. will post 5.69 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Sun Life Financial Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, May 27th were issued a dividend of $0.96 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, May 27th. This is a positive change from Sun Life Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.92. This represents a $3.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.6%. Sun Life Financial’s payout ratio is presently 72.94%.

Sun Life Financial Profile

Sun Life Financial Inc, founded in 1865 and headquartered in Toronto, Ontario, is an international financial services organization that provides a range of insurance, wealth management and asset management solutions. The company serves individual and institutional clients, offering products designed to protect against life and health risks, help clients save for retirement, and manage investments on behalf of customers and third parties.

Core business activities include life and health insurance, group benefits for employers, retirement and pension products, and wealth management services such as mutual funds and segregated fund solutions.