The Canadian stock market turned bearish on Tuesday, as the negative growth in Canada’s gross domestic product and weaker-than-expected U.S. consumer confidence data hurt investors’ sentiments. The S&P/TSX Composite Index fell 39 points during the session to 20,221. With this, the index ended February with a 2.6% decline after posting solid 7.1% gains in January.
Despite strength in the shares of metal and mining, healthcare, and technology companies, weakness in other key market sectors like energy, financials, industrials, and utilities pressured the index yesterday.
Top TSX Composite movers and active stocks
Shares of Bank of Nova Scotia (TSX: BNS) slipped by 5.7% yesterday to $67.44 per share after it announced disappointing quarterly financial results. During the first quarter of its fiscal year 2023 (ended in January), the bank’s revenue fell 0.9% year over year to $7.98 billion, missing analysts’ expectations of $8.27 billion.
To add pessimism, Scotiabank’s adjusted earnings for the quarter declined by about 14% from a year ago to $1.85 per share due mainly to higher expenses and higher provisions for credit losses. On a year-to-date basis, BNS stock now trades with minor 1.7% gains.
Baytex Energy and MEG Energy were also among the worst performers on the Toronto Stock Exchange in the last session, as they plunged by more than 4% each.
On the positive side, First Quantum Minerals, Stelco Holdings, Algoma Steel Group, and Torex Gold Resources climbed by at least 4.7% each, making them the top-performing TSX stocks for the day.
Based on their daily trade volume, Manulife Financial, Suncor Energy, Baytex Energy, and Barrick Gold were the most active Canadian stocks.
TSX today
Metals prices continued to trade on a positive note early Wednesday morning after strong manufacturing data from China cheered investors. Given that, I expect TSX metal mining stocks to inch up at the open today. While no important domestic economic releases are due, Canadian investors may want to keep an eye on the monthly manufacturing and weekly crude oil stockpiles data from the United States this morning.
On the corporate events side, TSX-listed companies, including Descartes Systems, Tricon Residential, Athabasca Oil, Freehold Royalties, Kinaxis, Capital Power, Royal Bank of Canada, National Bank of Canada, and George Weston, are expected to release their latest quarterly earnings reports on March 1.
Market movers on the TSX today
