The Globe and Mail reports in its Friday edition that Desjardins Securities analyst Doug Young expects Canadian insurance companies to see a 6-per-cent year-over-year increase in core earnings per share for the third quarter with several sector-wide catalysts on the horizon. The Globe's David Leeder writes in the Eye On Equities column that Mr. Young continues to rate Sun Life Financial "buy." He gave his share target a $7 boost to $84. Analysts on average target the shares at $77.23. Mr. Young says in a note: "There are several themes we'll be watching for with [third quarter] results. First, core EPS should benefit from higher average equity markets, a depreciating Canadian dollar and share buybacks on a year-over-year basis. Second, reported EPS will likely be below core EPS for the group due to several factors, including commercial real estate (CRE) returns falling short of expectations. Third, on a company basis, the main focus will be on (1) the actuarial review impact for Sun Life Financial, Manulife Financial and Great-West Lifeco; (2) U.S. group results for Sun Life; (3) Asia trends for Manulife and Sun Life; (4) U.S. extended vehicle warranty trends for iA Financial; and (5) empower for Great-West."