GWO buys IPC

Article Excerpt

GREAT-WEST LIFECO, $37.61, is still a hold. The company (Toronto symbol GWO; shares outstanding: 931.7 million; Market cap: $34.9 billion; TSINetwork Rating: Above Average; Dividend yield: 5.5%; www.greatwestlifeco.com) has completed several acquisitions in the past few months as part of a plan to diversify its operations. Great-West’s latest acquisition, through its Canada Life unit, is Investment Planning Counsel Inc. (IPC). It will pay IGM Financial Inc. (Toronto symbol IGM) $575 million. IPC provides a variety of wealth management and planning services through 650 financial advisors. The company expects to complete the purchase by the end of 2023. Great-West will probably earn $3.63 a share for all of 2023, and the stock trades at 10.4 times that estimate. The low p/e reflects investor worries about the possible difficulties of integrating acquisitions. Meanwhile, the company’s $2.08 annual dividend rate yields a high 5.5%. Great-West Lifeco is still a hold. hold…