U.S. expansion pays off for TD

Article Excerpt

Dear safe-money investor: Toronto-Dominion Bank has successfully expanded its U.S. operations over the last few years. It now has more branches south of the border (1,278) than in Canada (1,156). President Donald Trump wants to relax restrictions imposed on U.S. banks in the wake of the 2008/2009 financial crisis. That should further raise TD’s U.S. profits. More generally, the bank will continue to gain from the improving U.S. economy. TD BANK $66.85 (Toronto symbol TD; Shares outstanding: 1.9 billion; Market cap: $125.1 billion; TSINetwork Rating: Above Average; Dividend yield: 3.6%; www.td.com) is Canada’s second-largest bank. TD earned $2.6 billion, or $1.33 a share, in the quarter ended January 31, 2017. That’s a 13.8% rise over the $2.2 billion, or $1.18, a year earlier. Earnings from Canadian banking (60% of the total) rose 3.5% in the quarter. The gain is the result of higher loan demand, lower insurance claims, higher fee-based income and wealth-management growth. Earnings from U.S. banking (30%) gained 6.5% thanks to stronger loan…