Canada lifeco quarterly profits, dividends seen safe

* Noisy quarter expected, assumption changes promised

* No dividend cuts expected after Manulife cut in Q2

* Stronger stock market offset by credit deterioration

By Andrea Hopkins

TORONTO, Nov 3 (Reuters) - There will be a lot of complex provisions and one-time items when Canada's big life insurers report quarterly earnings this week but the bottom line is they will stay profitable and their dividends appear safe.

Analysts and investors have been keenly awaiting third-quarter earnings season since North America's largest life insurer, Manulife Financial Corp (MFC.TO), surprised everybody in August by halving its dividend -- the only dividend cut taken by a big Canadian financial services company since the global economic crisis rocked lenders and insurers.

Manulife and No. 3 lifeco, Sun Life Financial Inc (SLF.TO), warned at the end of the second quarter that they would update the actuarial assumptions on which they base investment returns and costs, a move that will add a lot of complexity to the third-quarter results.

While the outlook for the lifecos is better than it was when stock markets were falling -- and insurance investments were plunging alongside -- analysts said the dust has not yet settled from the calamitous year that has passed.

"This quarter for investors is going to be about trying to sift through a lot of noise. I think when you do that, it will be fairly positive," said Edward Jones analyst Craig Fehr.