Desjardins Increases Great-West Lifeco (TSE:GWO) Price Target to C$80.00

Key Points

• Desjardins raised its price target on Great-West Lifeco to C$80.00 from C$71.00, while keeping a hold rating. The new target implies about 4.9% upside from the prior close.
• Other analysts were also more positive, with RBC, Scotia, Scotiabank, Barclays, and National Bank Financial all lifting their targets. MarketBeat data shows a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average target of C$77.18.
• Great-West Lifeco traded at C$76.26, near its 52-week high of C$77.04, after reporting quarterly EPS of C$1.37 on revenue of C$8.37 billion. The company also reported a 13.98% return on equity and a 10.96% net margin.

Great-West Lifeco (TSE:GWO - Get Free Report) had its price target hoisted by research analysts at Desjardins from C$71.00 to C$80.00 in a report issued on Friday,BayStreet.CA reports. The brokerage presently has a "hold" rating on the stock. Desjardins' price target would indicate a potential upside of 4.90% from the company's previous close.

Several other analysts have also weighed in on GWO. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their target price on shares of Great-West Lifeco from C$64.00 to C$77.00 in a research note on Friday. Scotia lifted their price target on shares of Great-West Lifeco from C$78.00 to C$83.00 and gave the company a "sector outperform" rating in a report on Friday. Scotiabank boosted their price objective on shares of Great-West Lifeco from C$68.00 to C$70.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 5th. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Great-West Lifeco from C$70.00 to C$73.00 in a research note on Thursday. Finally, National Bank Financial lifted their target price on Great-West Lifeco from C$65.00 to C$73.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Friday. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have assigned a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Great-West Lifeco has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of C$77.18.

Great-West Lifeco Stock Performance

TSE:GWO traded down C$0.10 during trading hours on Friday, reaching C$76.26. 504,991 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,655,716. The company has a quick ratio of 22.18, a current ratio of 5.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 44.93. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of C$66.82 and a 200-day simple moving average of C$64.86. Great-West Lifeco has a 52 week low of C$49.71 and a 52 week high of C$77.04. The stock has a market capitalization of C$69.12 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.90, a P/E/G ratio of 2.26 and a beta of 0.59.

Great-West Lifeco (TSE:GWO - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The company reported C$1.37 earnings per share for the quarter. The business had revenue of C$8.37 billion during the quarter. Great-West Lifeco had a return on equity of 13.98% and a net margin of 10.96%. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Great-West Lifeco will post 4.4525194 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Great-West Lifeco

In related news, insider L.P. Great-West Lifeco U.S. Holdings sold 46,413 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of C$63.46, for a total value of C$2,945,368.98. 70.70% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.

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