The Big 5: Scotiabank

The Bank of Nova Scotia was established in Halifax N.S in 1832. Scotiabank has deemed itself "Canada's International Bank" and with good reason. They have branches in more than 50 countries throughout the world and was the first Canadian bank to establish a branch outside the United States and United Kingdom. By expanding its international operations when the other Big 5 were trying to merge with each other, Scotiabank has catapulted itself to being the third largest bank in Canada by market capitalization.

 Here is a quick rundown of Scotiabank as of Dec 4, 2011:

Symbol on TSX-      BNS
Current Close-         $48.99
52 week High-         $61.28
52 week Low-         $48.02
EPS-                        $4.55
Anual Dividend         $2.08
Current Yield            4.24%


Scotiabank has continued to pay its dividend every year since its inception in 1833. With a dividend payout ratio of 46%, I'm sure Scotiabank will be able to continue the tradition for many years to come. Here's a look at Scotia's dividends since 2000. Keep in mind they had a stock split in 2004 and the dividend was adjusted accordingly.