U.S. expansion pays off for TD Bank

Article Excerpt

Dear safe-money investor: Toronto-Dominion Bank moved up steadily in 2016, as demand for new mortgages and loans remained strong. While the bank spent heavily on online and mobile banking last year, that should pay off in 2017 with lower operating costs and higher earnings. As well, TD has substantial U.S operations relative to other Canadian banks. That means it will continue to gain from the improving U.S. economy; the weak Canadian dollar further enhances its earnings from that market. TD BANK $67.65 (Toronto symbol TD; Shares outstanding: 1.9 billion; Market cap: $124.3 billion; TSINetwork Rating: Above Average; Dividend yield: 3.3%; www.td.com) is one of Canada’s largest banks, with $1.2 trillion in assets. It operates 1,156 branches in Canada and 1,278 in the U.S. The bank also owns 41.4% of TD Ameritrade (New York symbol AMTD), a leading online brokerage. TD earned $2.3 billion, or $1.22 a share, in the quarter ended October 31, 2016. That’s a 7.8% rise over the $2.2 billion, or…