Lower costs will boost earnings

Article Excerpt

BANK OF NOVA SCOTIA $60 is a buy. The bank (Toronto symbol BNS; Conservative Growth and Income Portfolios, Finance sector; Shares outstanding: 1.2 billion; Market cap: $72.0 billion; Price-to-sales ratio: 2.3; Dividend yield: 7.1%; TSINetwork Rating: Above Average; www.scotiabank.com) is cutting 3% of its global workforce as it aims to improve its long-term efficiency in the face of higher interest rates and inflation. In its fiscal 2023 fourth quarter, ended October 31, 2023, it set aside $1.26 billion to cover future loan losses. That’s up 137.4% from $529 million a year earlier. If you exclude all unusual items, the bank’s earnings in the quarter fell 38.8%, to $1.26 a share (or a total of $1.53 billion) from $2.06 a share (or $2.47 billion). However, the savings from Bank of Nova Scotia’s cost-cutting plan will probably lift its earnings in fiscal 2024 by about 5% to $6.85 a share. The stock trades at just 8.8 times that estimate. The $4.24 dividend looks secure, and yields…