Great-West Lifeco Inc.'s Quarterly Report to Shareholders for the second quarter of 2026, including its Management's Discussion and Analysis (MD&A) and consolidated interim financial statements for the three and six months ended June 30, 2026, are available at greatwestlifeco.com/financial-reports and sedarplus.ca. Readers are referred to the Basis of presentation, Cautionary note regarding Forward-Looking Information and Cautionary note regarding Non-GAAP Financial Measures and Ratios sections at the end of this release for additional information on disclosures.

All figures are expressed in millions of Canadian dollars, unless otherwise noted.

 Great-West Lifeco Inc. (Great West or the Company) today announced its Q2 2026 results.

"Great West delivered another quarter of strong results, with double-digit growth in base earnings, reflecting continued momentum across our Retirement and Wealth businesses," said David Harney, President and CEO, Great West. "We achieved our 19%+ base ROE objective, while deploying capital strategically through the acquisition of a retirement business in the U.S. and share repurchases. Supported by a strong balance sheet and robust capital generation, we remain well positioned to continue creating long-term value for our shareholders."

KEY FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS

Base earnings1 of $1,270 million and $1.42 per common share2 in the second quarter, up 11% from $1,149 million and 15% from $1.24 a year ago. The strong results were driven by sustained momentum in our Retirement and Wealth lines of business, led by Empower, and supported by strong Capital Solutions new business growth in Capital and Risk Solutions (CRS). Base earnings growth was partially tempered by unfavourable insurance experience in Canada and lower trading activity year-over-year.

Net earnings of $1,039 million in the second quarter ($894 million a year ago) or $1.16 per common share reflect unfavourable market experience, primarily driven by interest rate movements in the quarter.

HIGHLIGHTS

SEGMENTED OPERATING RESULTS

For reporting purposes, Great West's consolidated operating results are grouped into five reportable segments â?? United States, Canada, Europe, Capital and Risk Solutions and Corporate â?? reflecting the management and corporate structure of the Company. For more information, refer to the Company's Q2 2026 Management's Discussion and Analysis (MD&A).

UNITED STATES

CANADA

EUROPE

CAPITAL AND RISK SOLUTIONS

QUARTERLY DIVIDENDS

The Board of Directors (or Directors) approved a quarterly dividend of $0.67 per share on the common shares of Great West, payable September 29, 2026, to shareholders of record at the close of business September 1, 2026.

In addition, the Directors approved quarterly dividends on Great West's preferred shares, as follows:

For purposes of the Income Tax Act (Canada), and any similar provincial legislation, the dividends referred to above are eligible dividends.

NCIB Share Purchases 

For the second quarter, the Company repurchased 4.4 million common shares for $336 million under the Company's normal course issuer bid (NCIB) program. Share repurchases are made subject to market conditions, the Company's ability to effect the purchases on a prudent basis, applicable laws and the availability of other strategic opportunities.

Great West has amended its NCIB to increase the maximum number of common shares that may be repurchased from 20,000,000 common shares to 40,000,000 common shares. The amendment is expected to become effective on or about July 31, 2026.

Under the amended NCIB, Great West may, from January 6, 2026 to January 5, 2027, purchase up to 40,000,000 common shares for cancellation, representing approximately 4.41% of its 907,158,331 common shares issued and outstanding as at December 23, 2025. Based on the average daily trading volume on the TSX of 1,989,988 common shares for the six months preceding November 30, 2025 (net of repurchases by Great West during that period), daily purchases are limited to 497,497 common shares, other than block purchase exceptions. Purchases under the NCIB are made at prevailing market prices through the facilities of the TSX, other designated exchanges and/or other alternative Canadian trading systems or by other means permitted by applicable law. Great West is also permitted to purchase its shares from Power Financial Corporation and certain of its wholly-owned subsidiaries (collectively, PFC) in connection with the NCIB pursuant to an automatic disposition plan, in order for PFC to approximately maintain its proportionate percentage ownership in the Company. As of July 23, 2026, an aggregate of 13,444,105 common shares have been purchased under the current NCIB.

Analysts' Estimates 

The average estimate of base earnings per share and net earnings per share for the quarter among the analysts who follow the Company was $1.37 and $1.28, respectively.

Q2 2026 Conference Call

Great West's second quarter conference call and audio webcast will be held on Wednesday, July 29, 2026 at 9:30 a.m. ET.

The live webcast of the call will be available at 2nd Quarter 2026 â?? Conference Call and Webcast or by calling 1-647-932-3411 or 1-800-715-9871 (toll-free in North America). To join the conference call without operator assistance, please register and provide your phone number here.

A replay of the call will be available on July 29, 2026 until August 5, 2026. To listen to the replay, call 1-647-362-9199 or 1-800-770-2030 (toll-free in North America), entry code 3667574.

Selected consolidated financial information is attached.

ABOUT GREAT WEST

Great West is a financial services holding company focused on building stronger, more financially secure futures. We operate in the United States, Canada and Europe under the brands Empower, Canada Life and Irish Life. Together we provide wealth, retirement, group benefits and insurance and risk solutions to our approximately 40 million customer relationships. As of June 30, 2026, Great West's total client assets were $3.7 trillion.

Great West trades on the Toronto Stock Exchange (TSX) under the ticker symbol GWO and is a member of the Power Corporation group of companies. To learn more, visit greatwestlifeco.com.

Basis of presentationThe condensed consolidated interim financial statements for the period ended June 30, 2026 of Great West, have been prepared in accordance with International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) Accounting Standards unless otherwise noted and are the basis for the figures presented in this release, unless otherwise noted.

Cautionary note regarding Forward-Looking InformationFrom time to time, Great West makes written and/or oral forward-looking statements within the meaning of applicable securities laws, including in this release. Forward-looking information includes statements that are predictive in nature, depend upon or refer to future events or conditions, or include words such as "achieve", "ambition", "anticipate", "believe", "could", "estimate", "expect", "initiatives", "intend", "may", "objective", "opportunity", "plan", "potential", "project", "target", "will" and other similar expressions or negative versions of those words. Forward-looking information includes, without limitation, statements about the Company and its operations, business (including business mix), financial condition, expected financial performance (including revenues, earnings or growth rates and medium-term financial objectives), strategies and prospects, expected costs and benefits of acquisitions and divestitures (including timing of integration activities and timing and extent of revenue and expense synergies), the timing and extent of expected transformation charges and related expected run-rate base earnings savings, expected expenditures or investments (including but not limited to investment in technology infrastructure and digital capabilities and solutions and investments in strategic partnerships), value creation and realization and growth opportunities, product and service innovation, expected dividend levels, expected cost reductions and savings, expected capital management activities and use of capital, market position, estimates of risk sensitivities affecting capital adequacy ratios, estimates of financial risk sensitivities (including as a result of current market conditions), expected credit experience, anticipated global economic conditions, potential impacts of catastrophe events, potential impacts of geopolitical events and conflicts and the impact of regulatory developments (including changes to laws and government policies) on the Company's business strategy, growth objectives and capital.

Forward-looking statements are based on expectations, forecasts, estimates, predictions, projections and conclusions about future events that were current at the time of the statements and are inherently subject to, among other things, risks, uncertainties and assumptions about the Company, economic factors and the financial services industry generally, including the insurance, wealth and retirement solutions industries. They are not guarantees of future performance, and actual events and results could differ materially from those expressed or implied by forward-looking statements. Many of these assumptions are based on factors and events that are not within the control of the Company and there is no assurance that they will prove to be correct.

With respect to the proposed acquisition of Milliman's retirement plan and benefits administration business, management's expectations are subject to: (a) the timing and completion of the proposed acquisition; (b) the expected costs and benefits of the proposed acquisition, including the timing and cost of integration activities, the timing and extent of expected cost efficiencies and synergies, increased scale, capabilities and marketing of Empower, revenue diversification, value creation/realization and growth opportunities, product and service innovation, and improved client outcomes; (c) the impacts of the proposed acquisition on Great West's and Empower's financial condition and flexibility, including the expected internal rate of return of the proposed acquisition and expected base earnings accretion resulting from the proposed acquisition; and (d) the business and financial condition of Great West, Empower and the acquisition business and the U.S. retirement and benefits industry generally.

In all cases, whether or not actual results differ from forward-looking information may depend on numerous factors, developments and assumptions, including, without limitation, the ability to integrate and leverage acquisitions and achieve anticipated benefits and synergies, the achievement of expense synergies and client retention targets from the acquisition of the Prudential retirement business, the Company's ability to execute strategic plans and adapt or recalibrate these plans as needed, the Company's reputation, business competition, assumptions around sales, pricing, fee rates, customer behaviour (including contributions, redemptions, withdrawals and lapse rates), mortality and morbidity experience, expense levels, reinsurance arrangements, global equity and capital markets (including continued access to equity and debt markets and credit instruments on economically feasible terms), geopolitical tensions and related economic impacts, interest and foreign exchange rates, inflation levels, liquidity requirements, investment values and asset breakdowns, hedging activities, financial condition of industry sectors and individual issuers that comprise part of the Company's investment portfolio, credit ratings, taxes, impairments of goodwill and other intangible assets, technological changes, including use of emerging technologies, such as artificial intelligence (AI), in our business, breaches or failure of information systems and security (including cyber attacks), assumptions around third-party suppliers, changes in local and international laws and regulations, changes in accounting policies and the effect of applying future accounting policy changes, changes in actuarial standards, unexpected judicial or regulatory proceedings, catastrophic events, continuity and availability of personnel and third-party service providers, unplanned changes to the Company's facilities, customer and employee relations, levels of administrative and operational efficiencies, and other general economic, political and market factors in North America and internationally.

The above list is not exhaustive, and there may be other factors listed in the Company's filings with securities regulators, including those set out in the "Risk Management" and "Summary of Critical Accounting Estimates" sections of the Company's 2025 Annual MD&A and in the Company's annual information form dated February 11, 2026 under "Risk Factors". These, along with other filings, are available for review at www.sedarplus.ca. The reader is cautioned to consider these and other factors, uncertainties and potential events carefully and not to place undue reliance on forward-looking information.

Other than as specifically required by applicable law, the Company does not intend to update any forward-looking information whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

Cautionary note regarding Non-GAAP Financial Measures and RatiosThis release contains some non-Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP) financial measures and non-GAAP ratios as defined in National Instrument 52-112 "Non-GAAP and Other Financial Measures Disclosure". Terms by which non-GAAP financial measures are identified include, but are not limited to, "base earnings (loss)", "base earnings (loss) (US$)", "base earnings (loss) - pre-tax", "base earnings: insurance service result", "base earnings: net investment result", "assets under management or advisement", "assets under administration", "client assets", "non-par base operating and administration expenses", and "run-rate insurance results". Terms by which non-GAAP ratios are identified include, but are not limited to, "base earnings per common share (EPS)", "base return on equity (ROE)", "base dividend payout ratio", "base capital generation", "efficiency ratio", "effective income tax rate â?? base earnings â?? common shareholders" and "pre-tax base operating margin". Non-GAAP financial measures and ratios are used to provide management and investors with additional measures of performance to help assess results where no comparable GAAP (IFRS Accounting Standards) measure exists. However, non-GAAP financial measures and ratios do not have standard meanings prescribed by GAAP (IFRS Accounting Standards) and are not directly comparable to similar measures used by other companies. Refer to the "Non-GAAP Financial Measures and Ratios" section in this release for the appropriate reconciliations of these non-GAAP financial measures to measures prescribed by GAAP as well as additional details on each measure and ratio.

 

For a further description of base earnings, refer to the "Non-GAAP Financial Measures and Ratios" section of this document and the Company's second quarter of 2026 Interim Management's Discussion and Analysis.

Base earnings (loss) exclude the following items from net earnings:

 

 

 

Assets under administration (AUA), assets under management or advisement (AUMA), assets under administration only (AUAO) and client assetsAssets under administration, assets under management or advisement and client assets are non-GAAP financial measures. These measures provide an indication of the size and volume of the Company's overall business. Administrative services are an important aspect of the overall business of the Company and should be considered when comparing volumes, size and trends.

Total assets under administration includes assets under management or advisement (AUMA), assets under administration only (AUAO), the total of which is total client assets, and other balance sheet assets.

Client assets represents the total client assets under management or advisement plus assets under administration only for the Company's Retirement and Wealth lines of business.

Client assets are classified as AUMA where the Company earns a fee for one or more of the following services: investment management services for proprietary funds or institutional assets, discretionary portfolio management on behalf of clients, and/or the provision of financial advice. AUMA relate to the Company's Retirement and Wealth lines of business only.

Refer to the "Glossary" section of the Company's second quarter of 2026 Interim MD&A for the definition of AUAO.

Other balance sheet assets include insurance contract assets, reinsurance contract assets, goodwill and intangible assets, other assets, as well as the portion of invested assets and investments on account of segregated fund policyholders not included within total client assets.

The non-GAAP ratios disclosed by the Company each use base earnings (loss) as the non-GAAP component. Base earnings (loss) reflect management's view of the underlying business performance of the Company and provides an alternate measure to understand the underlying business performance compared to net earnings.

SOURCE Great-West Lifeco Inc.

SOURCE: Great-West Lifeco Inc.

For more information: Investor & Media Relations: Shubha Khan, 416-552-5951,
investorrelations@canadalife.com

COMTEX_489641432/2197/2026-07-28T17:01:00