STOCKCHASE

Could play this as well as the banks. Likes it and would buy it here. Good hedge on the stock market. Great west will be under a cloud and could be a takeout candidate. Stay with the banks, but if you want to peel a bit off to PWF, that is fine too.

2012-01-25

PAST TOP PICK

26.960

(A Top Pick Feb 11/11. Down 9.33%.) Still solid and still likes.

2012-01-20

DON'T BUY

25.740

Dividend is sustainable but there is no earnings growth whatsoever.

2012-01-16

BUY

25.160

John O'Connell, CFA

Good dividend yield. Have been struggling. Not just the insurance, but also the asset management business, which will be under some competitive pressure. Also had some exposure to some European assets. It's a non-bank financial, which he is more positive on. Be a seller at $30.

2012-01-09

Comment

24.810

Primary components are Paraba (?), Great West life (GWO-T) and Investors Group. What drives this company's price is the outlook for great West life and investors group. Selling at reasonable multiples to earn 13%-15% return on equity. Yield is about 5%. Not a bad place for a longer-term investor.

2011-12-19

Comment

24.600

Has been disappointing like all financials. Not a bank, but is largely an insurance company. 3 areas including European investments, fund management and life insurance through Great West Life (GWO-T). If a long-term investor, keep the stock. If you are short-term, no reason to be here.

2011-12-14

DON'T BUY

25.330

Not a lot of downside. Doesn’t like the financials that are linked to lifecos. It’s fine but there are financial institutions he prefers. There is better value in the small to mid-cap financials.

2011-12-12

BUY

23.960

Primary components of this company are Great West Life (GWO-T) and IGM Financial (IGM-T). Through the years has been a fairly good provider of dividends. Insurance companies have had difficulty in dealing with the environment of low interest rates and the declining equity values. You should be quite safe over the next 5 years.

2011-11-25

PAST TOP PICK

0.010

(A Top Pick Sept 17/10. Up 15.2%.)(Preferred A.)

2011-10-17

BUY

24.450

Owns Mackenzie Funds, Great West Life (GWO-T) and IGM Financial (IGM-T). Sells at a discount to its NAV. Looking at its dividend and its consistent growth, this is a great way to go.

2011-10-04

Comment

25.530

Has been a Top Pick several times over the last 5 years but has been a disappointment as it’s off 25% over the last 5 years even though it raised the dividend for 3 of those 5 years. It owns Mackenzie Funds, Great West Life (GWO-T) and IGM Financial (IGM-T). Once financials improve, you'll see this reflected in this company. 5% yield.

2011-09-29

HOLD

24.250

Extremely well run company. Has really high quality assets, main ones being IGM, Lifecos, Putnam in the US, European assets as well. Problem is Mutual finds – IGM; Lifecos don’t like declining interest and stock prices. Long term they are high quality companies that will do well. He will continue to hold because he is a long-term investor. 5.8% dividend.

2011-09-23

PAST TOP PICK

24.420

(Top pick Aug 10/10, Down 10.08%) Down because interest rates will stay low for the longer term. If economy does normalize, then this one will benefit from rising interest rates. We will be in a better position in 6 months. 6% dividend.

2011-09-22

Comment

25.970

Not seeing enough to get excited among the big lumbering financials. Good dividend at 5.3%. Can see the stock being range bound a train $25 and $30. Think there are better opportunities for growth and dividends in some of the smaller financials.

2011-09-08

BUY

26.280

Sandy McIntyre

Cheap stock. Consists of Great West Life (GWO-T) and Investors Group (IGM-T). One of the best managed financial companies in Canada. Dividend is very safe.

2011-09-07

BUY

26.410

Very attractive yield over 5%. Main components are the investors group and the mutual fund business and then Great West Life. Good businesses to be in in the longer term. You will not see this dividend cut. The family behind the company likes it.

2011-08-23

TOP PICK

25.740

Likes it because it is currently out of favour. The yield is better than what you will get from the banks. Diversified product because you are getting a lot of insurance company money. Doesn't have a lot of exposure to the mortgage market.

2011-08-19

PAST TOP PICK

27.080

(A Top Pick Aug 10/10. Down 1.43%.)

2011-08-11

PAST TOP PICK

0.010

(A Top Pick Sept 17/10. Up 10.8%.)(Preferred A.)

2011-08-04

HOLD

29.040

Lorne Steinberg

Controls Great West Life (GWO-T) and Investors Group (IGM-T). The latter is one of Canada's largest mutual fund companies and is a fantastic business as mutual fund fees are very high.

2011-07-14

PAST TOP PICK

29.030

(A Top Pick Apr 29/10. Down 1.3%.) Gets about 2/3rds of its profit from Great West Life (GWO-T) and about 1/4 from Investors Group (IGM-T). Good dividend of about 5% and dividend growth going forward.

2011-06-13

BUY

30.210

Power Corp (POW-T) or Power Financial (PWF-T)? Prefers and owns Power Financial, which has 3 sections including some European assets as well as Great West Life (GWO-T) and Investors Group (IGM-T). Keep increasing their dividends.

2011-06-02

Comment

31.300

Stan Wong

Won't lose money on this one over the next 12-18 months but there are other areas that will do better. Can't see financials having a tremendous growth phase. Pays a good dividend of 4.5%. Not a bad play for the next couple of months but after that there are better plays.

2011-05-12

BUY

31.090

Bruce Campbell

It’s ok, Underlying it is Great West and Investors Group. Prefers to Sun Life. Great West is least risky but least upside. May give a slight dividend yield increase later this year. He owns Great West directly but not PWF.

2011-05-10

PAST TOP PICK

31.410

(A Top Pick Feb 1/10. Up 9.22%.) Still likes and is still a Buy.

2011-04-04

BUY

31.150

David Baskin

You get a lot of scale and stability. You get mutual fund industry, life insurance industry. Not a bad idea. He prefers Power Corp because he believes you get a little more.

2011-03-22

DON'T BUY

30.790

Don Vialoux

Technicals are mixed. Long term resistance from early ’10 and it has ceased to come up to that level. It does have an upward trend right now. It’s a mixed picture. A right-angled triangle – it is about to have to break out. Would prefer bank stocks.

2011-03-18

BUY

31.560

Loves the power group. Little bit of discount to its net asset value. Thinks insurance group has had the pendulum swing in their favour away from banks.

2011-03-01

PAST TOP PICK

31.630

(A Top Pick March 9/10. Up 2.51%.)

2011-02-28

TOP PICK

31.220

A little concerned about the real estate market and mortgages, which gives him some concerns on banks in general. This is a holding company with Great West Life (GWO-T), London Life and Investors Group (IGM-T) giving a nice cross section of conservatively managed institutions. Good dividend.

2011-02-25

TOP PICK

30.950

Reasonably defensive play because of the strong dividend yield. With up tick in interest rates, Great West Life (GWO-T) is poised to grow. Investors Group (IGM-T) will be adding more to the bottom line than they have. Has potential to trade from high $30’s to low $40’s.

2011-02-11

PAST TOP PICK

30.690

(A Top Pick Feb 1/10. Up 6.59%.) Still a Buy.

2011-02-07

BUY

29.980

Thinks the stock is going higher. One of the main drivers is the ongoing dividend increases twice a year. Expecting Great West Life (GWO-T) will do better and Investors Group (IGM-T) will reflect the higher stock market.

2011-01-27

BUY

30.640

Michael Decter

Good alternative to Canadian bank stocks. A rebound in equity markets will help them a good deal.

2010-12-31

PAST TOP PICK

30.740

(A Top Pick Dec 23/09. Up 4.81%.) A non-bank financial alternative. Still likes.

2010-12-29

BUY

30.570

Douglas Kee

Well-managed, great company. Good dividend record (25%$ over last 5 years). No problem with the company.

2010-12-21

PAST TOP PICK

30.030

(A Top Pick Feb 1/10. Up 4.87%.) Still likes.

2010-12-17

BUY

30.030

Good dividend and good diversification. Don’t seem to have any plans to expand into the US.

2010-12-17

BUY

30.230

The pickup in Great West Life (GWO-T) will benefit them. Also with the market going up in 2011, which he expects, their other main stay Mackenzie will do well.

2010-12-15

BUY

30.660

He owns the parent. He likes this stock here. Dividend is going to go higher in 2011. Thinks it will have bigger growth than the banks.

2010-12-07

WEAK BUY

30.690

Not a huge amount of growth but extremely well managed. Good balance sheet. Dividend 4.6%. Prefers to putting money in the bank.

2010-12-06

BUY

30.140

Brendan Caldwell

Has both the Investors Group and life insurance assets. Really likes mutual fund business and feels it could run higher.

2010-11-25

STRONG BUY

29.110

This is a good time to purchase. This would be high up on his list of priorities to buy. Dividend increase should continue.

2010-10-12

HOLD

29.050

Sandy McIntyre

Got caught up with the malaise around ManuLife (MFC-T) but feels the selling was overdone.

2010-10-08

WAIT

29.100

Jim Huang

Conglomerate with the 2 main drivers being Great West Life (GWO-T) and Investors Group (IGM-T). For long-term holding, it can do quite well. Shorter term, all the insurance companies have got issues with lower interest rates and exposure to equity markets. Wait until there is clarity on interest rates.

2010-09-30

BUY

29.140

Jeff Black

Solid company. On the insurance side, Great West (GWO-T) is exposed to capital markets.

2010-09-29

TOP PICK

0.010

Preferred (PWF.PR.L) 5.1%. Current yield of about 5.69%. Next call is Oct 31/11. If it got called out at $26, you are looking at an almost 20% return but he doesn't think it will get called out.

2010-09-17

BUY

27.500

Conservative management. Very high quality holdings including a control position in Great West Life (GWO-T) and Investors Group (IGM-T). Also has high-quality investments in Europe.

2010-08-11

TOP PICK

28.080

Gets about three quarters of its business from Great West Life (GWO-T) with the remaining from Investors Group (IGM-T). 5% dividend yield.

2010-08-10

TOP PICK

28.300

5.10%. Parent for Great West Life, IGM Financial, investors group and Mackenzie financial.

2010-08-03

BUY

27.960

Nice, sustainable dividend. Into insurance, real estate, wealth management. Lots of good quality assets. If you believe stock markets have recovered, it will be good news for this one. You wont get rich this year, though. He Owns power corp.

2010-07-20

PAST TOP PICK

28.150

(A Top Pick July 22/09. Up 7%.) Likes it very much but there may still be some short-term downside is the financials look like they want to be weak. Great for long-term investors. History of regularly raising dividends. 5% yield.

2010-07-09

BUY

28.330

Ara Nalbandian

All of its underlying assets have been coming down recently. Likes it here. Recently sold its parent company Power Corp. (POW-T) at $30 and buying back at $26.50.

2010-06-23

HOLD

28.800

Jim Huang

(Market Call Minute) They’re doing fine although not a huge growth coming in.

2010-06-22

BUY

29.080

David Burrows

Pretty attractive company with substantial fee revenues from a number of different business lines. Good yield. The recent weakness is more sector and market driven.

2010-06-21

PAST TOP PICK

28.890

(A Top Pick March 29/10. Up 3.5%.) Series L 5.10% Bond. Still likes and is still a buy.

2010-06-16

BUY

27.510

Well run company – life insurance and in mutual fund business. Also has a European holding company. This has affected PWF. As a long-term investor he is happy to own it, but it may have further weakness.

2010-06-09

Comment

28.280

Christine Poole

Manulife (MFC-T) or Power Financial (PWF-T)? If you have a long-term horizon such as 3 years and a higher tolerance of volatility, she would choose Manulife, which has a very attractive valuation of 1.1X Book.

2010-05-26

STRONG BUY

28.210

Can’t go wrong with t his company if you are along term investor. They raise the dividend every year. Trading at a discount.

2010-05-25

Comment

28.370

With the decline of the euro, this will stimulate exports from Europe. Looking forward, he expects that he will buy more of this.

2010-05-20

PARTIAL BUY

29.240

Rick Stuchberry

Has pulled back because we are in a corrective phase in the market. Nothing wrong with this one. Reasonable yield. Well run company through the years. By a partial position and see how the stock performs.

2010-05-14

TOP PICK

29.950

Owns very solid assets including Great West Life (GWO-T) and Investors Group (IGM-T), which are very well managed. 4.5% dividend.

2010-05-06

TOP PICK

30.940

Insurers generally have not done as well as banks as the market has recovered. This is a holding company with 70% of Great West Life (GWO-T) and a little over half of Investors Group (IGM-T). As the economy improves and interest rates rise, both of those businesses should do really well. 4.5% dividend is quite solid. Great track record of increased dividends.

2010-04-29

BUY

31.600

Douglas Kee

Likes the power group of companies. He thinks this one will do well.

2010-04-20

DON'T BUY

33.600

Brian Acker, CA

Model price is $32.86, a -2% differential. In general all of the financials have come a long way. You could consider looking at National Bank (NA-T), which has a 20.5% upside to the current price.

2010-04-01

TOP PICK

33.500

Series L 5.10% Bond. This is a perpetual and the perpetuals have really gotten beaten down so are worth a look.

2010-03-29

HOLD

33.850

Jim Houston

Underlying assets of Great West (GWO-T) and IGM (IGM-T) gives good reason to think they will continue to grow. Will probably be increasing its dividend over time. 4% yield.

2010-03-25

TOP PICK

31.890

Holding company, owns great west life (the best performing lifeco). Owns IGM, which has done well. Own an asset manger in the US that was troubled and is turning around. European assets are doing well. Thinks it will resume raising its dividend again.

2010-03-09

BUY

31.040

John Zechner

It’s slow growth and not a lot of opportunities for a great increase in the price. If you are buying it for the dividend, then great. Dividend is safe. It’s fairly priced.

2010-03-01

TOP PICK

30.150

Holding company for Great West (GWO-T), IGM (IGM-T) and Putnam in the US (Best mutual fund in Barrens). 4.5% dividend yield. You have coverage for virtually everything you need within the asset management/investment field and insurance. Due for another dividend increase.

2010-02-01

TOP PICK

31.050

In the financial sector banks have seen their best for a while but insurers have a better outlook and better value. This one is a holding company for Great West (GWO-T), IGM (IGM-T) and Putnam in the US. Stock got overdone on the downside. Good dividend of about 4.5%, which it regularly raises.

2009-12-23

HOLD

30.390

Steven Conville

Very diversified in terms of its financial holdings. Could see this one going sideways over the next 6 to 12 months. Well run company. Still has room to the upside but it will be a slower crawl.

2009-12-18

BUY

29.740

Likes it – it’s on his buy list. 4.71% and expectation of 10-12% capital gain over the next 12 months. High grade stock, well run – one of our premier companies in Canada.

2009-12-14

SELL

27.690

Key underlying businesses are Investors Group and Great West Life are very good businesses but investors group doesn't seem to have a lot of growth in it. If you own, consider moving to a small financial.

2009-12-03

HOLD

27.650

Trades in lockstep with POW but this has a higher dividend.

2009-12-02

BUY

29.830

An interesting way to play 2 themes. Life companies are pretty well bombed out and they own a big chunk of Great Western (GWO-T). Also the asset management companies are also pretty well bombed out. A good place to put your money and get a good yield.

2009-10-16

BUY

30.000

Has owned it forever. Likes that it has a long-term record of growth and of raising its dividend, even twice in the last year. Likes the assets they have in Canada and the bonus kicker is the international assets.

2009-10-13

HOLD

29.690

Jim Huang

Financials and their big driver is Great West Life (GWO-T) and IGM Financial (IGM-T). Banks have had a pretty big run but this one has not moved very much and if there is to be more upside in financials this is the place to be. 4.72% yield.

2009-10-02

BUY

29.750

Douglas Kee

In the insurance company group but is way more diversified. Has Great West Life (GWO-T) and IGM Financial (IGM-T). A dividend grower.

2009-10-01

BUY

31.390

Good yield. Likes the mix of assets that it has. Good management.

2009-09-23

VAGUE

29.580

John Zechner

A slower growing company, slower growing company, safe bet, but no more than double digits including the distribution of 7%

2009-09-08

TOP PICK

29.280

Andrew Guy, CFA

Great history on dividends. Double digits, about 50% annual return on dividend growth. Allows you to participate in the recovery of the financial sector through the assets they own. Very well run.

2009-09-04

DON'T BUY

29.090

Ross Healy

Has had a pretty spectacular recovery and not sure there is a lot left in Fair Market Value.

2009-08-13

TOP PICK

27.660

Holding company. Owns Great West Life (GWO-T) (which owns Canada Life and London Life) and IGM Financial (IGM-T). Also has Pargasa (?) in Europe and Putnam in the US. Nice dividend yield of 4.33%. Long-term hold.

2009-07-22

TOP PICK

26.660

All their businesses are very well run with strong balance sheets. Good cash flow generation. Represents a call on the market in the event that things do go well with their Mackenzie Financial and Investors Group and Putnam in the US that is owned through Great West Life (GWO-T). Has been incredibly beaten-down. 5.5% dividend is hugely attractive.

2009-07-14

BUY

17.750

Paul Gardner, CFA

Preferred A shares yielding about 6.4% versus bonds. This is an interesting time for preferreds because you are high on the capital structure versus the Commons and you have tax advantages.

2009-07-08

BUY

24.650

Laura Wallace

Trading at a 15% discount to its NAV. Well diversified with good exposure to Great West Life (GWO-T) and IGM Financial (IGM-T) as well as some international. Good dividend. Really strong management.

2009-06-23

PAST TOP PICK

26.110

(A Top Pick May 20/08. Down 22.56%.) Raising its dividend in the middle of the downturn and yet it sells off as much as the rest of the higher beta financial stocks. Still a Buy.

2009-06-04

BUY

23.410

Andrew Guy, CFA

Excellence in quality of management. Increase dividend and share increase in earnings with shareholders. You get share in holdings in Europe. Biggest shareholder in Total in France.

2009-04-17

PAST TOP PICK

21.510

(A Top Pick April 24/08 Down 42.2%.) Has a good spread of investments. Well run company. Always paid good dividends.

2009-04-09

Comment

20.350

Mark Carpani

Strategy of 50% in 24-year corporate bonds and 50% common shares? As long as you have other assets in your portfolio. 70% of their net asset value is in Great West Life (GWO-T). From a liquidity purpose he would stick to Great West Life for the shares and stay with the bonds.

2009-04-01

HOLD

19.930

Largest shareholder in IGM Financial (IGM-T), which owns Investors Group, Canada Life, Great West Life and London Life. 6.2% yield.

2009-03-30

TOP PICK

19.790

Very cheap and owns one of the most conservative of the insurance companies, Great West (GWO-T). Had to take a markdown on the mutual fund operation Putnam in the US that was acquired just before the wheels fell off the market. Still an attractive stock.

2009-03-23

HOLD

14.780

Hard to see why the stock price is so low. As a broad exposure. Seems to have been caught in this general downdraft. 9.5% yield.

2009-03-09

Comment

15.950

Brendan Caldwell

Holds Great West Life (GWO-T), which has less exposure to the market than Manufacturers Life (MFC-T). Also has the Investors Group (IGM-T). This is a way of investing in the market, leveraged to the market and if there is a turnaround this should do better than the market as a whole.

2009-03-05

BUY

24.200

Brendan Caldwell

(Market Call Minute.) Likes financial services and gives a 6% yield.

2009-01-19

Comment

24.000

Robert Floyd

Preferreds. A lot of preferred shares are not holding up price wise. If looking at preferreds today, it is important to try to get resets. (Some preferreds reset interest rates after a period of time.)

2009-01-15

BUY

22.190