Bank of Nova Scotia (NYSE: BNS) in the fourth quarter FY 16 reported 9% growth in the net income to $2,011 million and the 8% growth in the diluted earnings per share to $1.57 due to the strong performance from its domestic and international banking businesses. As a result, the stock made a gap up opening today and generated over 2.2% (as of 2:19PM EST on November 30th, 2016). Bank of Nova Scotia has posted ROE of 14.7%, compared to 14.2%. BNS’s revenue for the fourth quarter grew 10.1%to $6.75 billion, up from $6.13 billion and consist of the provision for credit losses is $550 million, down $1 million compared to corresponding period last year. BNS has beaten the analysts’ estimates for earnings per share of $1.13.
Moreover, in FY 16 the bank reported the 6% growth in the adjusted net income after restructuring to $7,646 million and the 6% growth in adjusted diluted earnings per share to $6.00.
Bank of Nova Scotia in FY 16 has seen growth in the personal, commercial and wealth businesses, both in Canada and in the key Pacific Alliance markets. The bank is investing in digital capabilities to get an even greater customer experience and more efficient operations. Additionally, Bank of Nova Scotia has further improved the asset and deposit mix, to generate improved returns for shareholders. The International Banking has posted strong results, and the annual earnings exceeded $2 billion for the first time due to the key Pacific Alliance region that has again recorded double digit deposit and asset growth along with the improved performance from the Caribbean and Central America. However, while the economic growth has moderated somewhat in select markets, Bank of Nova Scotia will strengthen and drive deeper customer relationships to gain profitable market share and grow earnings. In addition, the Global Banking and Markets segment had improved second half of the FY 16 due to the better performance in fixed income and corporate banking.
BNS has declared a quarterly dividend of $0.74 per share, payable on January 27th, 2017, to stockholders of record on January 3rd, 2017, with an ex-dividend date of December 29th, 2016.
Adams Asset Advisors LLC has raised its stake in shares of Bank of Nova Scotia by 5.1% during the third quarter, as per the most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). Zacks Investment Research has upgraded the shares of Bank of Nova Scotia from a sell rating to a hold rating on 25th November 2016.
BNS stock has risen 18.71% in a year (source: Google Finance). According to tipranks.com, 5 analysts has covered the stock while recommend a “Moderate Buy”. BNS has an average price target of $60, which is a further upside of 11.23%.