Great-West Lifeco Inc. (TSE:GWO) Receives C$43.60 Average PT from Analysts

Shares of Great-West Lifeco Inc. (TSE:GWO) have been given a consensus recommendation of “Hold” by the seven analysts that are presently covering the company, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company. The average 12 month price target among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is C$44.00.

Several equities analysts recently commented on GWO shares. National Bankshares upped their price objective on Great-West Lifeco from C$42.00 to C$43.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 2nd. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price objective on Great-West Lifeco from C$44.00 to C$46.00 in a report on Friday, May 3rd. CIBC upped their price objective on shares of Great-West Lifeco from C$44.00 to C$46.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, February 16th. BMO Capital Markets lifted their target price on shares of Great-West Lifeco from C$44.00 to C$45.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, May 3rd. Finally, TD Securities cut their price objective on shares of Great-West Lifeco from C$45.00 to C$44.00 in a report on Thursday, May 2nd.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Senior Officer Bradley John Fedorchuk sold 2,900 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of C$42.44, for a total transaction of C$123,062.08. In other news, Senior Officer Linda Kerrigan sold 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of C$42.95, for a total transaction of C$214,750.00. Also, Senior Officer Bradley John Fedorchuk sold 2,900 shares of Great-West Lifeco stock in a transaction on Monday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of C$42.44, for a total transaction of C$123,062.08. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 13,300 shares of company stock worth $566,402. Corporate insiders own 70.58% of the company’s stock.

Great-West Lifeco Stock Down 0.3 %

GWO stock opened at C$42.78 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of C$39.91 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.19, a P/E/G ratio of 2.26 and a beta of 0.86. Great-West Lifeco has a 1-year low of C$37.06 and a 1-year high of C$45.18. The company has a current ratio of 37.37, a quick ratio of 22.18 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 29.96. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is C$41.98 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is C$42.34.

Great-West Lifeco (TSE:GWO) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 14th. The company reported C$1.04 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of C$0.99 by C$0.05. Great-West Lifeco had a net margin of 10.05% and a return on equity of 11.74%. The business had revenue of C$20.21 billion for the quarter. Analysts expect that Great-West Lifeco will post 4.20199 EPS for the current year.

Great-West Lifeco Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 31st will be issued a $0.555 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 31st. This represents a $2.22 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.19%. Great-West Lifeco’s payout ratio is currently 63.25%.

About Great-West Lifeco

Great-West Lifeco Inc engages in the life and health insurance, retirement and investment services, asset management, and reinsurance businesses in Canada, the United States, and Europe. The company offers life, accidental death and dismemberment, disability, critical illness, health and dental protection, and creditor insurance products; and retirement and wealth savings, income and annuity products, and other specialty products to individuals, families, businesses, and organizations.