Power Corp. of Canada Earnings: Great-West Solid, but Alternative Asset Management Losses Continue

Power Corp. of Canada reported middling first-quarter results as Great-West Life remained solid but other stand-alone businesses, including alternative asset management platforms Sagard and Power Sustainable, struggled. The firm reported adjusted net earnings of CAD 514 million, or CAD 0.77 per share, compared with CAD 442 million, or CAD 0.65 per share, in the first quarter of the previous year. Adjusted earnings from the publicly listed operating companies (Great-West, IGM Financial, and Groupe Bruxelles Lambert) were reported at CAD 682 million in the first quarter compared with CAD 613 million in the previous year. The company declared a quarterly dividend of 52.50 cents per share, representing a 5.8% dividend yield at the current stock price. Power Corp.'s net asset value per share stood at CAD 46.89 as of the end of the first quarter of 2023, up from CAD 41.91 at the beginning of the quarter primarily because of the price appreciation in Great-West’s stock price. We are maintaining our CAD 41.50 fair value estimate for Power Corp. after incorporating the first-quarter results.