BNS Bank of Nova Scotia

TORONTO, Aug. 27, 2024 /CNW/ - The Bank of Nova Scotia (Scotiabank) (TSX: BNS) (NYSE: BNS) reported third quarter net income of $1,912 million compared to $2,192 million in the same period last year. Diluted earnings per share (EPS) were $1.41 compared to $1.70 in the same period a year ago.

Adjusted net income⁽¹⁾ for the third quarter was $2,191 million and adjusted diluted EPS⁽¹⁾ were $1.63, down from $1.72 last year. Adjusted return on equity⁽¹⁾ was 11.3% compared to 12.1% a year ago.

"We made important progress in executing against our strategy this quarter, delivering solid revenue growth and generating continued positive operating leverage," said Scott Thomson, President and Chief Executive Officer of Scotiabank. "Through a continued challenging environment, we achieved quarter over quarter EPS growth from balanced business line results while further strengthening our balance sheet."

Canadian Banking generated adjusted earnings⁽¹⁾ of $1.1 billion this quarter, up 6% year over year. The results reflect solid revenue growth from continued deposit momentum and net interest margin expansion, a third consecutive quarter of positive operating leverage, partly offset by an increase in provision for credit losses compared to the prior year.

International Banking generated adjusted earnings⁽¹⁾ of $709 million, up 10% year over year. Solid revenue growth, driven by strong margin expansion, and continued expense discipline were partly offset by higher provision for credit losses. Year-to-date positive operating leverage remains strong, reflecting the significant impact of productivity initiatives in the region.

Global Wealth Management adjusted earnings⁽¹⁾ were $418 million, up 11% year over year. Solid revenue growth, driven by higher fee-based client assets, outpaced expense growth resulting in positive operating leverage for the quarter. Additionally, assets under management of $364 billion grew 10% year over year.

Global Banking and Markets reported earnings of $418 million, down 4% year over year.  Higher revenues, driven by Corporate and Investment Banking, were more than offset by higher provision for credit losses and investments to support business growth.

The Bank reported a Common Equity Tier 1 (CET1) capital ratio⁽³⁾ of 13.3%, up from 12.7% last year.

"We have also taken an important early step towards our long-term vision of delivering sustainable, profitable growth through a strategic investment in KeyCorp, increasing the capital deployed to our identified priority markets," continued Mr. Thomson. "We expect that this transaction will enhance near-term profitability, grow and diversify our well-established U.S. business, and create future strategic optionality for Scotiabank as we expand our presence in the North American corridor."

On November 1, 2023, the Bank adopted IFRS 17 Insurance Contracts, which provides a comprehensive principle-based framework for the recognition, measurement, presentation, and disclosure of insurance contracts and replaces IFRS 4, the previous accounting standard for insurance contracts. The Bank adopted IFRS 17 on a retrospective basis, restating the results from the transition date of November 1, 2022. Accordingly, results for fiscal 2023 have been restated to reflect the IFRS 17 basis of accounting for insurance contracts. Refer to Notes 3 and 4 of the condensed interim financial statements in the Bank's Q3 2024 Quarterly Report to Shareholders for details.

Canadian Banking

Q3 2024 vs Q3 2023

Net income attributable to equity holders was $1,110 million, compared to $1,050 million, an increase of $60 million or 6%. The increase was due primarily to higher revenues, partly offset by higher provision for credit losses and non-interest expenses.

Q3 2024 vs Q2 2024

Net income attributable to equity holders increased $102 million or 10%. The increase was due primarily to higher revenues, partly offset by higher non-interest expenses and provision for credit losses.

Year-to-date Q3 2024 vs Year-to-date Q3 2023

Net income attributable to equity holders was $3,213 million compared to $3,191 million, up 1%. Adjusted net income was $3,215 million, an increase of $21 million or 1%. The increase was due primarily to higher revenues, partly offset by higher provision for credit losses and non-interest expenses.

International Banking

Q3 2024 vs Q3 2023

Net income attributable to equity holders increased $48 million to $669 million. Adjusted net income attributable to equity holders increased $46 million to $674 million. The increase was driven by higher net interest income and non-interest income, lower provision for income taxes and the positive impact of foreign currency translation, partly offset by higher provision for credit losses and non-interest expenses.

Q3 2024 vs Q2 2024

Net income attributable to equity holders decreased $2 million. Adjusted net income attributable to equity holders decreased $3 million. Lower net interest income and higher provision for credit losses were mostly offset by higher non-interest income, the positive impact of foreign currency translation and lower provision for income taxes.

Year-to-date Q3 2024 vs Year-to-date Q3 2023

Net income attributable to equity holders was $2,086 million, an increase of 10% from $1,901 million. Adjusted net income attributable to equity holders was $2,103 million, an increase of $180 million or 9%. The increase was driven by higher net interest income and non-interest income and the positive impact of foreign currency translation, partly offset by higher provision for credit losses, non-interest expenses and provision for income taxes.

Financial Performance on a Constant Dollar Basis

The discussion below on the results of operations is on a constant dollar basis. Under the constant dollar basis, prior period amounts are recalculated using current period average foreign currency rates, which is a non-GAAP financial measure (refer to Non-GAAP Measures starting on page 6). The Bank believes that constant dollar is useful for readers in assessing ongoing business performance without the impact of foreign currency translation and is used by management to assess the performance of the business segment.

Q3 2024 vs Q3 2023

Net income attributable to equity holders was $669 million, up $41 million or 7% and adjusted net income attributable to equity holders was $674 million, up $39 million or 6%. The increase was driven by higher net interest income and non-interest income, and lower provision for income taxes, partly offset by higher provision for credit losses and non-interest expenses.

Q3 2024 vs Q2 2024

Net income attributable to equity holders decreased $7 million or 1%. Adjusted net income attributable to equity holders decreased $8 million or 1%. The decrease was due primarily to lower net interest income, higher provision for credit losses and non-interest expenses, partly offset by higher non-interest income and lower provision for income taxes.

Year-to-date Q3 2024 vs Year-to-date Q3 2023

Net income attributable to equity holders was $2,086 million, an increase of 4% from $2,010 million. Adjusted net income attributable to equity holders was $2,103 million, an increase of $72 million or 4%. The increase was driven by higher net interest income, partly offset by lower non-interest income and higher provision for credit losses and non-interest expenses.

Global Wealth Management

Q3 2024 vs Q3 2023

Net income attributable to equity holders was $408 million, an increase of $42 million or 11%. Adjusted net income attributable to equity holders was $415 million, up $42 million or 11%. The increase was due primarily to higher brokerage revenues and net interest income in Canada, and higher mutual funds fees across the Canadian and International wealth businesses. This was partly offset by higher non-interest expenses, due largely to volume-related expenses.

Q3 2024 vs Q2 2024

Net income attributable to equity holders increased $28 million or 7% due primarily to higher brokerage revenues, mutual fund fees, and net interest income. This was partly offset by higher non-interest expenses, due largely to volume-related expenses.

Year-to-date Q3 2024 vs Year-to-date Q3 2023

Net income attributable to equity holders was $1,156 million, up $52 million or 5%. Adjusted net income attributable to equity holders was $1,176 million, up $52 million or 5%. The increase was due primarily to higher brokerage revenues and net interest income in Canada and higher mutual fund fees in International Wealth, particularly within Mexico. This was partly offset by higher non-interest expenses due largely to volume-related expenses.

Global Banking and Markets

Q3 2024 vs Q3 2023

Net income attributable to equity holders was $418 million, a decrease of $16 million or 4%.  This decrease was due to lower non-interest income, higher non-interest expenses and higher provision for credit losses, partly offset by higher net interest income and lower income tax expense.

Q3 2024 vs Q2 2024

Net income attributable to equity holders decreased by $10 million or 2% due to lower non-interest income, higher non-interest expenses, higher provision for credit losses and higher income tax expense, partly offset by higher net interest income.

Year-to-date Q3 2024 vs Year-to-date Q3 2023

Net income attributable to equity holders was $1,285 million, a decrease of $69 million or 5% due to lower net interest and non-interest income and higher non-interest expenses, partly offset by lower income tax expense and provision for credit losses.

Other

Q3 2024 vs Q3 2023

Net income attributable to equity holders was a net loss of $729 million, compared to a net loss of $299 million last year.  Adjusted net income attributable to equity holders was a net loss of $465 million compared to a net loss of $299 million last year. The higher loss of $166 million was due mainly to lower revenues driven by higher funding costs. These were partly offset by higher revenue from liquid assets and a lower taxable equivalent basis (TEB) gross-up as the Bank no longer claims the dividend received deduction on Canadian shares that are mark-to-market property. The TEB gross-up is offset in income taxes.

Q3 2024 vs Q2 2024

Net loss attributable to equity holders increased $308 million from the prior quarter. Adjusted net loss attributable to equity holders increased $44 million from the prior quarter. The higher loss was due mainly to lower revenues and higher non-interest expenses. Lower revenues were driven mainly by lower investment gains, and unrealized losses on non-trading derivatives this quarter.

Year-to-date Q3 2024 vs Year-to-date Q3 2023

Net income attributable to equity holders was a net loss of $1,624 million compared to a net loss of $1,535 million. Adjusted net income attributable to equity holders was a net loss of $1,360 million compared to a net loss of $956 million. The higher loss of $404 million was due mainly to lower revenues, partly offset by lower non-interest expenses. The decrease in revenue was due primarily to higher funding costs, partly offset by higher income from liquid assets and a lower TEB gross-up, as the Bank no longer claims the dividend received deduction on Canadian shares that are mark-to-market property. The TEB gross-up is offset in income taxes.

Provision for credit losses

Q3 2024 vs Q3 2023

The provision for credit losses was $1,052 million, compared to $819 million, an increase of $233 million. The provision for credit losses ratio increased 13 basis points to 55 basis points.

The provision for credit losses on performing loans was $82 million, compared to $81 million. The provision this quarter was driven by the impact of higher interest rates, including the related migration in retail portfolios in Canadian Banking, as well as higher corporate and commercial provisions due to the continued unfavourable macroeconomic outlook and credit quality migration. This was partly offset by retail credit migration to impaired in International Banking, mainly in Chile and Peru.

The provision for credit losses on impaired loans was $970 million, compared to $738 million, an increase of $232 million or 31% due primarily to higher formations in International Banking retail portfolios, mostly in Colombia, Chile and Peru. There were also higher provisions in the Canadian retail portfolios, primarily auto loans and credit cards. The provision for credit losses ratio on impaired loans was 51 basis points, an increase of 13 basis points.

Q3 2024 vs Q2 2024

The provision for credit losses was $1,052 million, compared to $1,007 million. The provision for credit losses ratio was 55 basis points, an increase of one basis point.

The provision for credit losses on performing loans was $82 million, compared to $32 million. The increase in provision was driven by the continued unfavourable macroeconomic outlook and uncertainty around the impact of higher interest rates across corporate and commercial portfolios, as well as credit migration and growth in the Canadian Banking retail portfolios.  This was partly offset by retail credit migration to impaired in International Banking, mainly in Chile and Peru.

The provision for credit losses on impaired loans was $970 million, compared to $975 million, a decrease of $5 million or 1%, due primarily to lower retail provisions in Canadian Banking across most products, partly offset by higher retail provisions across most markets in International Banking. The provision for credit losses ratio on impaired loans was 51 basis points, a decrease of one basis point.

Year-to-date Q3 2024 vs Year-to-date Q3 2023

The provision for credit losses was $3,021 million, compared to $2,166 million, an increase of $855 million. The provision for credit losses ratio increased 16 basis points to 53 basis points.

Provision for credit losses on performing loans was $134 million, compared to $245 million. The year-to-date provision reflects the impact of a continued unfavourable macroeconomic outlook, growth in Canadian and International retail portfolios, as well as the impact of migration in the Canadian Banking retail portfolios, and higher corporate and commercial provisions.  This was partly offset by retail credit migration to impaired in International Banking.

Provision for credit losses on impaired loans was $2,887 million compared to $1,921 million, an increase of $966 million, due primarily to higher formations in the International Banking retail portfolios, across most markets, as well as higher provisions in Canadian Banking. The provision for credit losses ratio on impaired loans increased 18 basis points to 51 basis points.

Allowance for credit losses

The total allowance for credit losses as at July 31, 2024, was $6,860 million compared to $6,768 million last quarter. The allowance for credit losses ratio was 89 basis points, an increase of one basis point. The allowance for credit losses on loans was $6,582 million, an increase of $75 million from the prior quarter.

The allowance for credit losses was higher due to provisions in Canadian Banking retail portfolios, mainly in residential mortgages, auto loans and unsecured revolving products, higher commercial provisions in International Banking and the impact of the continued macroeconomic outlook mainly on commercial, corporate and Canadian retail portfolios. The increase was partly offset by the impact of foreign currency translation of $62 million.

The allowance against performing loans was higher at $4,542 million compared to $4,507 million last quarter. The allowance for performing loans ratio was 62 basis points, an increase of one basis point from last quarter. The allowance was driven by the impact of higher interest rates, including the related migration in retail portfolios in Canadian Banking, as well as higher corporate and commercial provisions due to the continued unfavourable macroeconomic outlook and credit quality migration.  This was partly offset by retail credit migration to impaired in International Banking, mainly in Chile and Peru, and the impact of foreign currency translation. The impact of foreign currency translation decreased the allowance by $32 million.

The allowance on impaired loans increased to $2,040 million from $2,000 million last quarter. The increase was due primarily to retail credit migration in International Banking and higher provisions in commercial portfolios, partly offset by the impact of foreign currency translation. The impact of foreign currency translation decreased the allowance by $30 million. The allowance for impaired loans ratio was 27 basis points, unchanged from last quarter.

Impaired loans

Gross impaired loans increased to $6,489 million as at July 31, 2024, from $6,399 million last quarter. The increase was due primarily to new commercial formations in Canadian Banking mainly related to one account in the agriculture sector, new formations in International retail portfolios, and in International commercial mainly related to one account in the wholesale and retail sector in Mexico.  The increase was partly offset by the impact of foreign currency translation. The gross impaired loan ratio was 84 basis points, an increase of one basis point from last quarter.

Net impaired loans in Canadian Banking were $1,253 million, an increase of $95 million from last quarter, due primarily to new formations related to one commercial account in the agriculture sector and lower provisions in the retail portfolio across most products. International Banking's net impaired loans were $3,118 million, a decrease of $23 million from last quarter, due primarily to the impact of foreign currency translation and higher retail provisions. In Global Wealth Management, net impaired loans were $34 million, a decrease of $20 million from last quarter, due primarily to repayments. In Global Banking and Markets, net impaired loans were $44 million, a decrease of $2 million from last quarter. Net impaired loans as a percentage of loans and acceptances were 0.58%, an increase of one basis point from last quarter.

The Bank's Common Equity Tier 1 (CET1) capital ratio⁽¹⁾ was 13.3% as at July 31, 2024, an increase of approximately 10 basis points from the prior quarter, due primarily to internal capital generation, share issuances from the Bank's Shareholder Dividend and Share Purchase Plan (DRIP), and revaluation gains on FVOCI securities, partly offset by higher risk-weighted assets.

The Bank's Tier 1 capital ratio⁽¹⁾ was 15.3%, as at July 31, 2024, an increase of approximately 10 basis points from the prior quarter, due mainly to the above noted impacts to the CET1 ratio.

The Total capital ratio⁽¹⁾ was 17.1%, as at July 31, 2024, largely unchanged from the prior quarter, as the above noted impacts to the Tier 1 capital ratio and an issuance of $1 billion of subordinated debentures were offset by the redemption of $1.5 billion of subordinated debentures.

The Leverage ratio⁽²⁾ was 4.5% as at July 31, 2024, an increase of approximately 10 basis points from the prior quarter, mainly from higher Tier 1 capital.

The Total loss absorbing capacity (TLAC) ratio⁽³⁾ was 29.1% as at July 31, 2024, an increase of approximately 20 basis points from the prior quarter, mainly from higher available TLAC.

The TLAC Leverage ratio⁽³⁾ was 8.5%, an increase of approximately 10 basis points from the prior quarter, due primarily to higher available TLAC.

As at July 31, 2024, the CET1, Tier 1, Total capital, Leverage, TLAC and TLAC Leverage ratios were well above OSFI's minimum capital ratios.

The Bank uses a number of financial measures and ratios to assess its performance, as well as the performance of its operating segments. Some of these financial measures and ratios are presented on a non-GAAP basis and are not calculated in accordance with Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP), which are based on International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) as issued by the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB), are not defined by GAAP and do not have standardized meanings and therefore might not be comparable to similar financial measures and ratios disclosed by other issuers. The Bank believes that non-GAAP measures and ratios are useful as they provide readers with a better understanding of how management assesses performance. These non-GAAP measures and ratios are used throughout this press release and defined below.

Adjusted results and diluted earnings per share

Management considers both reported and adjusted results and measures useful in assessing underlying ongoing business performance. Adjusted results and measures remove certain specified items from revenue, non-interest expenses, income taxes and non-controlling interests. Presenting results on both a reported basis and adjusted basis allows readers to assess the impact of certain items on results for the periods presented, and to better assess results and trends excluding those items that may not be reflective of ongoing business performance.

Adjusting items impacting results are as follows:

1.  The Bank's Q3 2024 reported resulted were adjusted for the following items. These amounts were recorded in the Other operating segment.

a)        Divestitures and wind-down of operations

In Q3 2024, the Bank entered into an agreement to sell CrediScotia Financiera, a wholly-owned consumer finance subsidiary in Peru, to Banco Santander. The Bank recognized an impairment loss of $143 million in non-interest income and a credit of $7 million in non-interest expenses ($90 million after-tax). For further details, please refer to Note 22 of the Consolidated Financial Statements in the Bank's Q3 2024 Quarterly Report to Shareholders.

b)        Legal provision

In Q3 2024, the Bank recognized a $176 million expense for legal actions relating to certain value-added tax assessed amounts in Peru and associated interest. For further details, please refer to Note 20 of the Consolidated Financial Statements in the Bank's Q3 2024 Quarterly Report to Shareholders.

2.  All reported periods were adjusted for:

a)        Amortization of acquisition-related intangible assets

These costs relate to the amortization of intangible assets recognized upon the acquisition of businesses, excluding software, and are recorded in the Canadian Banking, International Banking and Global Wealth Management operating segments.

3.  The Bank's fiscal 2023 reported results were adjusted for the following item. This amount was recorded in the Other operating segment.

a)        Canada Recovery Dividend

In Q1 2023, the Bank recognized an additional income tax expense of $579 million reflecting the present value of the amount payable for the Canada Recovery Dividend (CRD). The CRD is a Canadian federal tax measure which requires the Bank to pay a one-time tax of 15% on taxable income in excess of $1 billion, based on the average taxable income for the 2020 and 2021 taxation years. The CRD is payable in equal amounts over five years; however, the present value of these payments was recognized as a liability in the period enacted.

Reconciliation of reported and adjusted results and diluted earnings per share

Reconciliation of reported and adjusted results by business line

Reconciliation of International Banking's reported, adjusted and constant dollar results

International Banking business segment results are analyzed on a constant dollar basis which is a non-GAAP measure. Under the constant dollar basis, prior period amounts are recalculated using current period average foreign currency rates. The following table presents the reconciliation between reported, adjusted and constant dollar results for International Banking for prior periods. The Bank believes that constant dollar is useful for readers to understand business performance without the impact of foreign currency translation and is used by management to assess the performance of the business segment.