Lazard Asset Management LLC Reduces Stock Position in Bank of Nova Scotia (The) $BNS

Lazard Asset Management LLC trimmed its holdings in Bank of Nova Scotia (The) (NYSE:BNS) (TSE:BNS) by 5.6% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 96,520 shares of the bank’s stock after selling 5,773 shares during the period. Lazard Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Bank of Nova Scotia were worth $6,695,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in BNS. Lombard Odier Asset Management Switzerland SA grew its position in shares of Bank of Nova Scotia by 13.2% during the first quarter. Lombard Odier Asset Management Switzerland SA now owns 119,581 shares of the bank’s stock worth $8,291,000 after buying an additional 13,900 shares in the last quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio raised its holdings in Bank of Nova Scotia by 21.2% in the first quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio now owns 311,846 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $21,556,000 after acquiring an additional 54,593 shares in the last quarter. Compound Planning Inc. boosted its stake in Bank of Nova Scotia by 4.7% during the 1st quarter. Compound Planning Inc. now owns 18,565 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $1,287,000 after acquiring an additional 825 shares during the last quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia boosted its stake in Bank of Nova Scotia by 1.1% during the 1st quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia now owns 63,864 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $4,429,000 after acquiring an additional 689 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Dickmeyer Boyce Financial Management Inc. acquired a new position in Bank of Nova Scotia during the 1st quarter worth $303,000. 49.13% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Bank of Nova Scotia Stock Performance

Shares of BNS stock opened at $87.90 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $107.68 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.78, a PEG ratio of 1.07 and a beta of 1.11. The business has a 50 day moving average of $84.99 and a two-hundred day moving average of $77.95. Bank of Nova Scotia has a 52 week low of $55.21 and a 52 week high of $90.47. The company has a quick ratio of 1.04, a current ratio of 1.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69.

Bank of Nova Scotia (NYSE:BNS) (TSE:BNS) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 27th. The bank reported $1.47 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.42 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $7.24 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.13 billion. Bank of Nova Scotia had a return on equity of 13.16% and a net margin of 13.38%.The business’s quarterly revenue was up 8.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.52 EPS. As a group, analysts anticipate that Bank of Nova Scotia will post 6.01 EPS for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Bank of Nova Scotia in a research report on Friday, May 22nd. Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their price target on Bank of Nova Scotia from $98.00 to $117.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 28th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $117.00.

Bank of Nova Scotia Profile

Bank of Nova Scotia, commonly known as Scotiabank, is a Canadian multinational banking and financial services company founded in 1832 and headquartered in Toronto, Ontario. It is one of Canada’s largest banks and provides a broad range of financial services to retail, commercial, corporate and institutional clients. The bank combines a domestic Canadian franchise with an extensive international presence to serve customers across multiple markets.

Scotiabank’s core activities include personal and commercial banking, wealth management, corporate and investment banking, capital markets, and global transaction banking.