Bank of Nova Scotia (NYSE:BNS) Sees Large Volume Increase

The Bank of Nova Scotia (NYSE:BNS) (TSE:BNS) shares saw an uptick in trading volume on Thursday . 3,373,901 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, an increase of 65% from the previous session’s volume of 2,041,570 shares.The stock last traded at $51.50 and had previously closed at $51.16.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

BNS has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Barclays initiated coverage on Bank of Nova Scotia in a report on Wednesday, March 20th. They issued an “underweight” rating and a $70.00 price target for the company. Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on Bank of Nova Scotia in a report on Thursday, February 22nd. They set a “hold” rating for the company. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Bank of Nova Scotia from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 29th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets cut their price target on shares of Bank of Nova Scotia from $73.00 to $68.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, November 29th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and four have issued a hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $68.00.

Bank of Nova Scotia Stock Performance

The company has a current ratio of 1.03, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56. The company has a market cap of $63.28 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.47, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.67 and a beta of 1.03. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $48.03 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $46.06.

Bank of Nova Scotia (NYSE:BNS) (TSE:BNS) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 27th. The bank reported $1.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.19 by $0.06. Bank of Nova Scotia had a net margin of 10.71% and a return on equity of 11.51%. The business had revenue of $14.13 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.01 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.37 EPS. As a group, equities analysts forecast that The Bank of Nova Scotia will post 4.9 earnings per share for the current year.

Bank of Nova Scotia Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 26th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 2nd will be given a $0.7843 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, April 1st. This is a positive change from Bank of Nova Scotia’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.78. This represents a $3.14 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.06%. Bank of Nova Scotia’s payout ratio is 51.77%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Bank of Nova Scotia

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Bank of Nova Scotia by 2.8% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 46,971,032 shares of the bank’s stock worth $2,287,020,000 after acquiring an additional 1,279,934 shares in the last quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank boosted its holdings in Bank of Nova Scotia by 3.4% during the third quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank now owns 22,567,680 shares of the bank’s stock worth $1,028,861,000 after purchasing an additional 736,807 shares during the last quarter. TD Asset Management Inc boosted its holdings in Bank of Nova Scotia by 23.2% during the fourth quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 19,841,901 shares of the bank’s stock worth $970,577,000 after purchasing an additional 3,731,541 shares during the last quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp boosted its holdings in Bank of Nova Scotia by 4.1% during the fourth quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 16,557,752 shares of the bank’s stock worth $809,940,000 after purchasing an additional 659,492 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank acquired a new position in Bank of Nova Scotia during the fourth quarter worth $652,409,000. 49.13% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Bank of Nova Scotia

The Bank of Nova Scotia provides various banking products and services in Canada, the United States, Mexico, Peru, Chile, Colombia, the Caribbean and Central America, and internationally. It operates through Canadian Banking, International Banking, Global Wealth Management, and Global Banking and Markets segments.