The Investment Reporter, in its Jan. 27, 2017, issue, says hold Bank of Nova Scotia, recently $78.71. The Reporter said buy 27 times from Oct. 24, 1996, to Dec. 18, 2015, at prices ranging from $31.50 to $67.48 (the stock split 2 for 1 on Feb. 10, 1998, and again on April 2, 2004). An investment of $1,000 for each of the 27 buys would now be worth $71,153. The Reporter recommends holding the big five Canadian banks as "long-term cornerstones" of your portfolio. The banks pay attractive dividends; Scotiabank's $2.96 annual dividend is a 3.8-per-cent yield. The banks also raise their dividends every year; this attracts income-seeking investors who bid up the prices of your shares and enables you to beat inflation. The big banks stand to gain from rising U.S. interest rates, which may lead to higher Canadian interest rates. They can earn more interest on assets (such as loans) than they pay on liabilities (such as deposits). Scotiabank is now expected to earn $6.35 a share in fiscal 2017, giving a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.2. Based on its fiscal 2018 estimated earnings of $6.74 a share, the P/E ratio is 11.5. Rather than trying to guess the winner, hold all the five banks as a package.