Great-West Lifeco (TSE:GWO) Sets New 12-Month High Following Analyst Upgrade

Great-West Lifeco Inc. (TSE:GWO)’s stock price hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Wednesday after Scotiabank raised their price target on the stock from C$83.00 to C$95.00. Scotiabank currently has a sector outperform rating on the stock. Great-West Lifeco traded as high as C$92.93 and last traded at C$92.58, with a volume of 273469 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at C$91.25.

Several other analysts have also issued reports on GWO. Desjardins increased their price objective on Great-West Lifeco from C$71.00 to C$80.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, May 8th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on Great-West Lifeco from C$70.00 to C$76.00 in a research note on Friday, May 8th. Barclays upped their target price on Great-West Lifeco from C$70.00 to C$73.00 in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce raised their price target on Great-West Lifeco from C$81.00 to C$95.00 in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, National Bank Financial lifted their price target on Great-West Lifeco from C$65.00 to C$73.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Friday, May 8th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have given a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of C$80.73.

Insider Transactions at Great-West Lifeco

In other news, insider Jean-Francois Poulin sold 20,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, June 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of C$89.55, for a total transaction of C$1,791,000.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 160 shares in the company, valued at approximately C$14,328. This trade represents a 99.21% decrease in their position. Also, Director Edmund Francis Murphy sold 40,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of C$86.20, for a total transaction of C$3,448,000.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 8,784 shares in the company, valued at C$757,180.80. This represents a 81.99% decrease in their position. Insiders have sold a total of 119,200 shares of company stock worth $9,821,888 in the last 90 days. 70.70% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Great-West Lifeco Stock Up 1.4%

The business has a 50-day simple moving average of C$83.70 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of C$72.03. The company has a market cap of C$83.11 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.90, a PEG ratio of 2.26 and a beta of 0.67. The company has a quick ratio of 22.18, a current ratio of 6.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 29.59.

Great-West Lifeco (TSE:GWO) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The company reported C$1.37 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. The company had revenue of C$8.37 billion during the quarter. Great-West Lifeco had a return on equity of 15.17% and a net margin of 12.86%. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Great-West Lifeco Inc. will post 4.4525194 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Great-West Lifeco Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, June 30th were given a dividend of $0.67 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, June 2nd. This represents a $2.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.9%. Great-West Lifeco’s dividend payout ratio is presently 53.76%.

Great-West Lifeco Company Profile

Great-West Lifeco is one of the three big Canadian life insurance firms. With just under half of the firm’s profit and revenue in Canada, Great-West also operates in the U.S. and Europe. In Canada, Great-West provides both individual and group insurance. In the United States, Great-West operates Putnam Investments and defined-contribution recordkeeping firm Empower Retirement. In 2020, Great-West announced it would acquire Personal Capital and MassMutual’s recordkeeping business. In Europe, Great-West offers life insurance, annuities, and reinsurance primarily in the U.K., Ireland, and Germany.