Power Corporation of Canada

The business

Power Corporation is a diversified international management and holding company controlled by the Desmarais family. Its core value is controlling interests in Great-West Lifeco (insurance and retirement) and IGM Financial (wealth and asset management).

It also holds alternative-asset platforms (e.g. Sagard, Power Sustainable) and standalone investments. Cash flows are driven by dividends up from the operating subsidiaries, and the company steers on adjusted net earnings and net asset value rather than volatile IFRS results.

The moat

Controlling positions in leading, well-capitalized Canadian financial franchises (Great-West Lifeco, IGM) with sticky insurance and advice-based wealth relationships.

Long-term, family-controlled ownership allows patient capital allocation and steady dividend growth.

Scale and distribution in insurance and wealth management create durable, recurring fee and spread income.

Financial snapshot

Most recent reported period : Most recent reported: Q1 FY2026 (ended Mar 31, 2026); market data as of Aug 4, 2026. Figures reflect the review date — confirm current numbers before acting.

Free cash flow yield & sustainable growth

Earnings yield : ≈4.2% (est.)1 ÷ trailing P/E of ~23.7x ≈ 4.2% earnings yield on C$95.94; forward P/E of ~14.3x implies ~7% on normalized earnings. Dividend yield ~2.8% (C$2.67/share).

Earnings are driven by dividends and adjusted earnings flowing up from Great-West Lifeco and IGM, which have grown steadily. The forward P/E (~14x vs trailing ~24x) signals expected normalization/growth in earnings, and POW has a multi-year record of mid-to-high single-digit dividend increases funded by rising subsidiary distributions.

See the full earnings-yield ranking →

Valuation & what to watch

As a holding company, POW typically trades at a discount to the market value of its underlying stakes. The reported ~23.7x trailing P/E overstates the multiple on normalized earnings; the ~14.3x forward P/E implies a more realistic ~7% forward earnings yield. For a diversified financial holding, earnings yield (≈1/PE) is the cleaner lens than FCF, given insurance accounting.

Dividend

Power Corporation pays a growing dividend (~C$2.67/yr, ~2.8% yield) supported by dividends received from Great-West Lifeco and IGM, with a long history of annual increases.

Risks & the bear case

• A persistent holding-company discount to net asset value can weigh on the share price.
• Earnings are highly sensitive to insurance-market conditions, interest rates, equity markets and IFRS-17 accounting volatility at Great-West Lifeco.
• Family dual-class control limits minority-shareholder influence, and results depend on the performance of a few large subsidiaries.

Recent developments

Shares are near 52-week highs (~C$95.94) after a strong ~72% one-year run.

Value continues to be driven by Great-West Lifeco and IGM Financial results and ongoing build-out of alternative-asset platforms (Sagard, Power Sustainable).

Verdict

POW is a way to own leading Canadian insurance and wealth franchises at a holding-company discount with a steady, growing ~2.8% dividend; the trade-offs are the persistent NAV discount, IFRS-17-driven earnings volatility and concentrated family control. After a strong run the discount has narrowed. This is a publisher's analysis, not investment advice.