New strategy gives BNS an edge

Article Excerpt

Canada’s big five banks remain well-positioned to weather downturns in the Canadian economy, contrary to pessimistic forecasts from some in the business media. We like all five, but feel Bank of Nova Scotia is particularly appealing for new buying right now given the recent drop in its stock price. The bank’s new focus on four high-growth countries in Latin America also helps cut its exposure to any slowdown in Canada. Moreover, steady fee income from its expanding wealth management operations reduce its exposure to falling interest rates. BANK OF NOVA SCOTIA $69 (Toronto symbol BNS; Conservative Growth and Income Portfolios, Finance sector; Shares outstanding: 1.2 billion; Market cap: $82.8 billion; Price-to-sales ratio: 3.1; Dividend yield: 5.0%; TSINetwork Rating: Above Average; www.scotiabank.com) is the third-largest of Canada’s five big banks, with assets of $1.06 trillion. In this country, Bank of Nova Scotia sells a wide variety of financial services to over 10 million individual and corporate clients through 957 branches. This business includes its…