Scotiabank’s focus is set to pay off

Article Excerpt

Shares of Bank of Nova Scotia continue to rebound as the economy recovers from the COVID-19 pandemic. Still, they have lagged the gains of Canada’s other four big banks (see page 43). That’s mainly because Bank of Nova Scotia has shifted its international focus in the past few years to four countries in Latin America—Mexico, Peru, Colombia and Chile. The pandemic has had a bigger impact on those developing nations compared to Canada, but their rising vaccination rates put them in a strong position to catch up. Investors will also benefit from the bank’s recent acquisitions to strengthen its wealth management business in Canada, particularly as more baby boomers approach retirement. BANK OF NOVA SCOTIA $88 is a buy. The bank (Toronto symbol BNS; Conservative Growth and Income Portfolios, Finance sector; Shares outstanding: 1.2 billion; Market cap: $105.6 billion; Price-to-sales ratio: 3.6; Dividend yield: 4.5%; TSINetwork Rating: Above Average; www.scotiabank.com) is Canada’s third-largest bank by market cap after Royal Bank (No. 1) and TD Bank. Bank of…