Desjardins Brokers Boost Earnings Estimates for Great-West Lifeco Inc. (TSE:GWO)

Great-West Lifeco Inc. (TSE:GWO) – Research analysts at Desjardins lifted their FY2024 EPS estimates for shares of Great-West Lifeco in a report released on Tuesday, April 9th. Desjardins analyst D. Young now expects that the company will post earnings of $4.18 per share for the year, up from their prior forecast of $4.14. The consensus estimate for Great-West Lifeco’s current full-year earnings is $4.14 per share. Desjardins also issued estimates for Great-West Lifeco’s FY2025 earnings at $4.50 EPS.

Great-West Lifeco (TSE:GWO) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 14th. The company reported C$1.04 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of C$0.99 by C$0.05. Great-West Lifeco had a net margin of 7.95% and a return on equity of 10.28%. The company had revenue of C$20.21 billion for the quarter.

Several other equities research analysts have also recently weighed in on the company. Scotiabank upped their price target on Great-West Lifeco from C$42.00 to C$44.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 6th. TD Securities upped their price objective on shares of Great-West Lifeco from C$44.00 to C$45.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday. National Bankshares upped their price objective on shares of Great-West Lifeco from C$40.00 to C$42.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 23rd. CIBC upped their price objective on shares of Great-West Lifeco from C$44.00 to C$46.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, February 16th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets upped their price objective on shares of Great-West Lifeco from C$42.00 to C$44.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 25th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, According to MarketBeat.com, Great-West Lifeco currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of C$43.11.

Great-West Lifeco Trading Down 0.3 %

Shares of Great-West Lifeco stock opened at C$40.36 on Friday. Great-West Lifeco has a 52-week low of C$37.05 and a 52-week high of C$45.18. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is C$42.60 and its 200 day simple moving average is C$42.04. The stock has a market capitalization of C$37.63 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.77, a P/E/G ratio of 2.26 and a beta of 0.86. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 32.33, a quick ratio of 22.18 and a current ratio of 12.42.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Great-West Lifeco news, Senior Officer Bradley John Fedorchuk sold 2,900 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of C$42.44, for a total value of C$123,062.08. In other Great-West Lifeco news, Senior Officer Bradley John Fedorchuk sold 2,900 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of C$42.44, for a total value of C$123,062.08. Also, Senior Officer Linda Kerrigan sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, February 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of C$42.95, for a total value of C$214,750.00. Insiders sold 13,300 shares of company stock valued at $566,402 over the last quarter. 70.57% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Great-West Lifeco Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 28th. Investors of record on Thursday, February 29th were paid a $0.555 dividend. This is a positive change from Great-West Lifeco’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.52. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, February 28th. This represents a $2.22 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.50%. Great-West Lifeco’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 75.77%.

Great-West Lifeco Company Profile

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.