Great-West Lifeco (TSE:GWO) Price Target Raised to C$87.00 at Barclays

Key Points

• Barclays raised Great-West Lifeco’s price target from C$86 to C$87, implying 4.3% downside from the previous close. Analysts collectively rate the stock “Moderate Buy,” with an average target of C$88.55.
• Great-West Lifeco reported quarterly EPS of C$1.42 and revenue of C$8.35 billion, with a 12.86% net margin and 15.17% return on equity.
• The shares traded at C$90.91, near their 52-week high of C$93.69. Insiders sold 119,200 shares worth approximately C$9.82 million over the past 90 days.

Great-West Lifeco (TSE:GWO - Get Free Report) had its price target upped by equities research analysts at Barclays from C$86.00 to C$87.00 in a report released on Wednesday,BayStreet.CA reports. Barclays's price target points to a potential downside of 4.30% from the stock's previous close.

GWO has been the topic of a number of other research reports. Scotia boosted their price target on Great-West Lifeco from C$78.00 to C$83.00 and gave the stock a "sector outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, May 8th. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price objective on Great-West Lifeco from C$84.00 to C$107.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 21st. Desjardins lifted their target price on Great-West Lifeco from C$71.00 to C$80.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, May 8th. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their target price on Great-West Lifeco from C$64.00 to C$77.00 in a report on Friday, May 8th. Finally, National Bank Financial raised their price target on Great-West Lifeco from C$93.00 to C$95.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a report on Wednesday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have assigned a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of C$88.55.

Great-West Lifeco Stock Performance

Shares of GWO traded down C$0.99 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching C$90.91. The stock had a trading volume of 725,453 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,621,602. The firm has a market cap of C$81.64 billion, a PE ratio of 19.55, a P/E/G ratio of 2.26 and a beta of 0.67. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of C$86.85 and a 200-day simple moving average of C$73.76. Great-West Lifeco has a one year low of C$51.60 and a one year high of C$93.69. The company has a current ratio of 6.57, a quick ratio of 22.18 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 29.59.

Great-West Lifeco (TSE:GWO - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, July 28th. The company reported C$1.42 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. Great-West Lifeco had a net margin of 12.86% and a return on equity of 15.17%. The company had revenue of C$8.35 billion for the quarter. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Great-West Lifeco will post 4.4525194 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Mei Dong sold 39,400 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, May 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of C$76.33, for a total value of C$3,007,402.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 2,721 shares in the company, valued at C$207,693.93. The trade was a 93.54% decrease in their position. Also, Director Edmund Francis Murphy sold 40,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of C$86.20, for a total value of C$3,448,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 8,784 shares of the company's stock, valued at C$757,180.80. This trade represents a 81.99% decrease in their ownership of the stock. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 119,200 shares of company stock valued at $9,821,888. Insiders own 70.70% of the company's stock.

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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