Feb 12 (Reuters) - Sun Life Financial ( SLF ) reported

a fall in its fourth-quarter profit on Wednesday, hurt by

weakness in its group-health protection business.

Canada's second-largest life insurer's underlying net income

was C$965 million ($674.59 million), or C$1.68 per share, for

the three months ended December 31, compared with C$983 million,

or C$1.68 per share, a year earlier.

($1 = 1.4305 Canadian dollars)