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Great-West Lifeco

GWO.TO
61
Insurance - Life · Financial Services
Also trades as: 0AH3.L
Price
C$88.74
+0.64 (+0.73%)
Market Cap
C$79.44B
Exchange
Toronto Stock Exchange
Winston Score
61
Winston is curious
A decent business — some strong pillars, some weaker.
Data as of Aug 23, 2026 · filings through Jun 30, 2026
How the score breaks down
Quality
Good
Growth
Mixed
Cash Flow
Good
Stability
Exceptional
Valuation
Good
Dividends
Good

Winston Score History

The full picture

Great-West Lifeco is a Canadian financial services company that sells life insurance, health insurance, and retirement savings products to individuals and employers. Its main brands include Canada Life, Empower Retirement, and Irish Life, serving millions of customers across Canada, the United States, and Europe. It is one of the largest life and health insurers in Canada by assets.

The company makes money by collecting insurance premiums and managing retirement plan assets, earning fees and investment income on the large pools of money it holds. Great-West operates across North America and several European markets, giving it geographic diversification that many smaller insurers lack. Its scale and long-standing customer relationships create some switching costs, but the business faces ongoing pressure from rising claims costs, low investment yields, and competition from both traditional insurers and newer digital financial services providers.

Share count broadly stable

0.2% over 4y

The share count has stayed roughly flat over this period — little dilution or buyback activity.

Diluted shares outstanding: 931.0M (2021) → 928.8M (2025)

Score breakdown

Every number that matters to educated investors.

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Quality

Profit per sale
Gross Margin
27.0%
Modest — 27.0% gross margin
Profit after running costs
Operating Margin
25.3%
Excellent — 25.3% operating margin
Return on the money invested
ROCE
18.9%
Strong — 18.9% return on capital

ROIC between 15% and 25%. Every dollar invested in the business earns 15 to 25 cents back per year.

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Growth

Sales growth
Sales YoY
-7.2%
Shrinking sales (-7.2% YoY)
Profit growth
EPS YoY
+22.0%
Earnings growing fast (+22.0% YoY)

Healthy double-digit earnings growth — what compounders look like.

How steady the profit is
EPS Consistency
4/8 quarters
Earnings inconsistent quarter-to-quarter

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Cash Flow

Profit that turns into cash
Cash Conversion
91%
Modest — 91% of profit becomes cash
Spare cash per sale
FCF Margin
11.4%
Modest free cash flow (11.4%)

FCF margin between 10% and 20%. Every $100 in sales becomes $10 to $20 in real cash.

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Stability

What it owes vs what it owns
Debt / Equity
0.29
Conservative — low debt load (0.29)
Covers its interest
Interest Cover
21.77x
Comfortably covers interest (21.8x)

Interest coverage above 8. Profits cover interest many times over.

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Valuation

Price vs profit
P/E Ratio (TTM)
18.2x
Fair value — P/E 18.2

P/E in the normal range. Price is roughly $15 for every $1 of yearly profit.

Cheaper or dearer next year
P/E vs Forward
+1.9
GROWING
Earnings expected to grow — slightly cheaper on forward P/E

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Dividends

Dividend
Dividend Yield
2.75%
Moderate income — 2.75% yield

Standard yield zone for stable dividend payers. A meaningful piece of total return.

Dividend record
Dividend Growth
+9.9%
Dividend growing modestly (9.9% YoY)

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