BNS vs. SPY

Last updated Apr 2, 2026

Compare and contrast key facts about The Bank of Nova Scotia (BNS) and State Street SPDR S&P 500 ETF (SPY).

SPY is a passively managed fund by State Street that tracks the performance of the S&P 500 Index. It was launched on Jan 22, 1993.

Performance

BNS vs. SPY - Performance Comparison

The chart below illustrates the hypothetical performance of a $10,000 investment in The Bank of Nova Scotia (BNS) and State Street SPDR S&P 500 ETF (SPY). The values are adjusted to include any dividend payments, if applicable.

BNS vs. SPY - Yearly Performance Comparison

	2026 (YTD)	2025	2024	2023	2022	2021	2020	2019	2018	2017
BNS The Bank of Nova Scotia	-3.72%	45.11%	17.55%	8.53%	-28.05%	40.62%	1.70%	17.49%	-18.28%	21.83%
SPY State Street SPDR S&P 500 ETF	-3.65%	17.72%	24.89%	26.18%	-18.18%	28.73%	18.33%	31.22%	-4.57%	21.71%

Returns By Period

The year-to-date returns for both investments are quite close, with BNS having a -3.72% return and SPY slightly higher at -3.65%. Over the past 10 years, BNS has underperformed SPY with an annualized return of 9.96%, while SPY has yielded a comparatively higher 14.06% annualized return.

BNS

• 1D: 1.27%
• 1M: -7.11%
• YTD: -3.72%
• 6M: 11.19%
• 1Y: 55.47%
• 3Y*: 19.51%
• 5Y*: 8.85%
• 10Y*: 9.96%

SPY

• 1D: 0.75%
• 1M: -4.28%
• YTD: -3.65%
• 6M: -1.42%
• 1Y: 18.14%
• 3Y*: 18.48%
• 5Y*: 11.86%
• 10Y*: 14.06%

*Multi-year figures are annualized to reflect compound growth (CAGR)

Return for Risk

BNS vs. SPY — Risk / Return Rank

Compare risk-adjusted metric ranks to identify better-performing investments over the past 12 months.

BNS

BNS Risk / Return Rank: 96
BNS Sharpe Ratio Rank: 97
BNS Sortino Ratio Rank: 97
BNS Omega Ratio Rank: 97
BNS Calmar Ratio Rank: 91
BNS Martin Ratio Rank: 95

SPY

SPY Risk / Return Rank: 59
SPY Sharpe Ratio Rank: 51
SPY Sortino Ratio Rank: 56
SPY Omega Ratio Rank: 60
SPY Calmar Ratio Rank: 58
SPY Martin Ratio Rank: 69

The rank (0–100) shows how this investment's returns compare to the risk taken. Higher = better. Based on the past 12 months of data, combining Sharpe, Sortino, and other metrics used by quantitative funds and institutional investors.

BNS vs. SPY - Risk-Adjusted Trends Comparison

This table presents a comparison of risk-adjusted performance metrics for The Bank of Nova Scotia (BNS) and State Street SPDR S&P 500 ETF (SPY). Risk-adjusted metrics are performance indicators that assess an investment's returns in relation to its risk, enabling a more accurate comparison of different investment options.

	BNS	SPY	Difference
Sharpe ratio Return per unit of total volatility	3.22	0.96	+2.27
Sortino ratio Return per unit of downside risk	4.26	1.49	+2.76
Omega ratio Gain probability vs. loss probability	1.62	1.23	+0.39
Calmar ratio Return relative to maximum drawdown	4.20	1.53	+2.66
Martin ratio Return relative to average drawdown	17.20	7.27	+9.93
Data is calculated on a 1-year rolling basis and updated daily. The trend shows the change in the indicator over the past month.

BNS vs. SPY - Sharpe Ratio Comparison

The current BNS Sharpe Ratio is 3.22, which is higher than the SPY Sharpe Ratio of 0.96. The chart below compares the historical Sharpe Ratios of BNS and SPY, offering insights into how both investments have performed under varying market conditions. These values are calculated using daily returns over the previous 12 months.

Sharpe Ratios by Period

	BNS	SPY	Difference
Sharpe Ratio (1Y) Calculated over the trailing 1-year period	3.22	0.96	+2.27
Sharpe Ratio (5Y) Calculated over the trailing 5-year period	0.46	0.70	-0.24
Sharpe Ratio (10Y) Calculated over the trailing 10-year period	0.45	0.79	-0.33
Sharpe Ratio (All Time) Calculated using the full available price history	0.50	0.56	-0.06

Correlation

The correlation between BNS and SPY is 0.50, which is considered to be moderate. This suggests that the two assets have some degree of positive relationship in their price movements. Moderate correlation can be acceptable for portfolio diversification, offering a balance between risk and potential returns.

Dividends

BNS vs. SPY - Dividend Comparison

BNS's dividend yield for the trailing twelve months is around 3.41%, more than SPY's 1.13% yield.

	TTM	2025	2024	2023	2022	2021	2020	2019	2018	2017	2016	2015
BNS The Bank of Nova Scotia	3.41%	4.17%	5.85%	8.56%	6.39%	5.09%	4.93%	3.53%	6.34%	4.80%	5.24%	8.13%
SPY State Street SPDR S&P 500 ETF	1.13%	1.07%	1.21%	1.40%	1.65%	1.20%	1.52%	1.75%	2.04%	1.80%	2.03%	2.06%

Drawdowns

BNS vs. SPY - Drawdown Comparison

The maximum BNS drawdown since its inception was -63.65%, which is greater than SPY's maximum drawdown of -55.19%. Use the drawdown chart below to compare losses from any high point for BNS and SPY.

Drawdown Indicators

	BNS	SPY	Difference
Max Drawdown Largest peak-to-trough decline	-63.65%	-55.19%	-8.46%
Max Drawdown (1Y) Largest decline over 1 year	-13.36%	-12.05%	-1.31%
Max Drawdown (5Y) Largest decline over 5 years	-39.12%	-24.50%	-14.62%
Max Drawdown (10Y) Largest decline over 10 years	-46.29%	-33.72%	-12.57%
Current Drawdown Current decline from peak	-9.76%	-5.53%	-4.23%
Average Drawdown Average peak-to-trough decline	-11.08%	-9.09%	-1.99%
Ulcer Index Depth and duration of drawdowns from previous peaks	3.26%	2.54%	+0.72%

Volatility

BNS vs. SPY - Volatility Comparison

The Bank of Nova Scotia (BNS) has a higher volatility of 6.64% compared to State Street SPDR S&P 500 ETF (SPY) at 5.35%. This indicates that BNS's price experiences larger fluctuations and is considered to be riskier than SPY based on this measure. The chart below showcases a comparison of their rolling one-month volatility.

Volatility by Period

	BNS	SPY	Difference
Volatility (1M) Calculated over the trailing 1-month period	6.64%	5.35%	+1.29%
Volatility (6M) Calculated over the trailing 6-month period	11.81%	9.50%	+2.31%
Volatility (1Y) Calculated over the trailing 1-year period	17.30%	19.06%	-1.76%
Volatility (5Y) Calculated over the trailing 5-year period, annualized	19.36%	17.06%	+2.30%
Volatility (10Y) Calculated over the trailing 10-year period, annualized	21.97%	17.92%	+4.05%