Great-West Lifeco (TSE:GWO) Stock Passes Above Two Hundred Day Moving Average - Should You Sell?

Key Points

• Great-West Lifeco's stock price has surpassed its 200-day moving average for the first time, reaching highs of C$52.18 and closing at C$52.06.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.61 per share, resulting in an annualized dividend of $2.44 and a yield of 4.7%.
• Market analysts have mixed ratings on the stock, with six hold ratings, three buy ratings, and one strong buy rating, reflecting a general cautious outlook.

Great-West Lifeco Inc. (TSE:GWO - Get Free Report) shares crossed above its 200-day moving average during trading on Monday . The stock has a 200-day moving average of C$51.67 and traded as high as C$52.18. Great-West Lifeco shares last traded at C$52.06, with a volume of 1,706,620 shares traded.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Desjardins boosted their target price on shares of Great-West Lifeco from C$52.00 to C$55.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday. Royal Bank Of Canada set a C$53.00 target price on shares of Great-West Lifeco and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 15th. CIBC reduced their target price on shares of Great-West Lifeco from C$60.00 to C$57.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on shares of Great-West Lifeco from C$55.00 to C$56.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research report on Thursday. Finally, Barclays boosted their target price on shares of Great-West Lifeco from C$56.00 to C$57.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Wednesday. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, three have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of C$56.67.

Great-West Lifeco Price Performance

The firm has a market cap of C$49.60 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.19, a PEG ratio of 2.26 and a beta of 0.84. The company's 50-day moving average is C$51.60 and its two-hundred day moving average is C$51.83.

Great-West Lifeco Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 29th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 29th will be paid a dividend of $0.61 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 29th. This represents a $2.44 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.6%. Great-West Lifeco's payout ratio is presently 50.79%.

Great-West Lifeco declared that its Board of Directors has approved a stock buyback program on Tuesday, August 5th that allows the company to buyback $0.00 in shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to reacquire shares of its stock through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are typically an indication that the company's management believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Activity

In other Great-West Lifeco news, Senior Officer Dervla Mary Tomlin sold 36,700 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of C$51.05, for a total transaction of C$1,873,520.32. Also, Senior Officer David Martin Harney sold 20,700 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of C$51.85, for a total value of C$1,073,263.95. 70.70% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

About Great-West Lifeco

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.