TD Bank is closing out this round of big bank earnings with a beat at $2.23 earnings per share, against an estimate of $2.20. It was the bread-and-butter Canadian personal and commercial side of things that drove the bus, with net income up seven per cent and revenue 17 per cent higher. The flies in the ointment seem appropriate for this odd quarter for the banks – that Canada Recovery Dividend bit again to the tune of $585 million, and the bank confirmed it’s in talks to extend the closing date of its US$13.4-billion acquisition of First Horizon (which sent shares of the latter tumbling yesterday.) TD-specific quirk, because this quarter has been full of quirks for the banks, is a $1.16-billion hit from its ties to the Stanford Ponzi scheme.

CWB ALSO TOPS ESTIMATES

Sticking with the banks, we’ve got another beat, this time out of Canadian Western Bank. Adjusted EPS came in at $1.02 against an estimate of $0.91, and the company is reporting gross impaired loans are getting back to more normalized levels than last year. CWB figures provisions for credit losses are getting back its historical range, a boost to the lender overall. The bank is a pretty interesting firm – in spite of its name, it’s been diversifying into central Canada – Ontario now accounts for a full 25 per cent of loans.

TSX BUCKS THE TREND, POSTS GAINS

I wouldn’t call it a huge gain – up 0.19 per cent – but still something for Toronto’s benchmark on a day when all but the Dow south of the border was in negative territory. It was the usual suspects leading the way – Canadian Natural Resources, Scotia and Suncor were among the lead points gainers – but it is something when rate hike fears have battered equity markets. That said, we’re looking at a rather muted open today, and we’ve got a new warning from frequent BNN guest David Rosenberg. He thinks rising treasury yields on the brink of surpassing earnings yields will cause stocks to struggle in the near-term.

OTHER NOTABLE STORIES

  • Shares of Best Buy are trending lower in the premarket – down three per cent or so – after it forecasted revenue would decline in the coming fiscal year.
  • Flipside, shares of Salesforce are up 16 per cent after the company topped expectations across the board and delivered a stronger-than-expected forecast.
  • Indigo isn’t going to play ball with ransomware attackers, according to a report in The Globe and Mail. That attack has knocked out its website, and threatened sensitive information.

NOTABLE RELEASES/EVENTS

  • Notable data: Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver (REBGV) home sales, U.S. Initial Jobless Claims, U.S. Productivity,
  • Notable earnings: TD Bank, Canadian Western Bank, Costco Wholesale, Turquoise Hill Resources, Pizza Pizza Royalty, Athabasca Oil, Macy’s, Best Buy, Kroger, Sleep Country Canada, Broadcom, Victoria’s Secret, Nordstrom, Parkland, Major Drilling