Scotiabank targets key growth areas

Article Excerpt

Bank of Nova Scotia continues to expand in two main areas: Latin America and wealth management. This includes recent acquisitions of banking operations in Chile and Peru as well as its $950 million all-stock purchase of wealth management firm Jarislowsky Fraser. These additions further diversify its business and enhance its long-term appeal. BANK OF NOVA SCOTIA $75.47 (Toronto symbol BNS; Shares outstanding: 1.2 billion; Market cap: $93.0 billion; TSINetwork Rating: Above Average; Dividend yield: 4.5%; www.scotiabank.com) is Canada’s third-largest bank. For the quarter ended July 31, 2018, earnings rose 7.4%, to $2.19 billion from $2.04 billion a year earlier. Per-share earnings rose 4.8%, to $1.76 from $1.68, on more shares outstanding. Earnings from Canadian banking operations (50% of the total) rose 8.7%, on higher interest rates and a drop in credit losses. The international business (31% of earnings) reported 14.8% higher profits on acquisitions and strong loan and deposit growth in Latin America. However, earnings from securities trading (19%) were unchanged. The bank’s total revenue in…