The Bank of Nova Scotia hiked its dividend as it reported its first-quarter profit slipped to $2.25 billion from $2.34 billion a year earlier. Canada's third-largest bank raised its quarterly payment to common shareholders by two cents to 87 cents per share. The Toronto-based lender's earnings for the three-month period ended Jan. 31 amounted to $1.71 per diluted share, compared with $1.86 a year ago. On an adjusted basis, the bank reported first-quarter net income of $1.75 per diluted share, down from $1.87 per diluted share a year ago. "While significant market volatility impacted some of our business lines, we still experienced strong growth," Porter said in a statement.

Source: CBC News February 26, 2019 13:52 UTC