Scotiabank grows at home and abroad

Article Excerpt

Bank of Nova Scotia stands out for safety-conscious investors among the big-five banks. It’s prospering in its domestic Canadian market. That gives it a solid base to fund its continuing international expansion, where it is avoiding large investments in the U.S. in favour of developing markets. This approach continues to pay off. BANK OF NOVA SCOTIA $54.80 (Toronto symbol BNS: Shares outstanding: 1.0 billion; Market cap: $56.9 billion; SI Rating: Above Average; Dividend yield: 3.6%) is the third largest of Canada’s five big banks, with assets of $523.4 billion. In the three months ended July 31, 2010, Bank of Nova Scotia earned $1.1 billion. That’s up 14.1% from $931 million a year earlier. Earnings per share rose 12.6%, to $0.98 from $0.87, on more shares outstanding. The bank set aside less money to cover bad loans because of the improving economy. In the latest quarter, loan-loss provisions fell 50.2%, to $276 million from $554 million a year earlier. Earnings at the Canadian banking division…