Investors Research Corp Lowers Stake in The Bank of Nova Scotia (NYSE:BNS)

Investors Research Corp lessened its position in shares of The Bank of Nova Scotia (NYSE:BNS) (TSE:BNS) by 8.6% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 3,200 shares of the bank’s stock after selling 300 shares during the quarter. Investors Research Corp’s holdings in Bank of Nova Scotia were worth $172,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Toronto Dominion Bank grew its position in Bank of Nova Scotia by 9.6% during the third quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank now owns 24,990,868 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $1,361,752,000 after acquiring an additional 2,195,604 shares during the period. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund grew its position in Bank of Nova Scotia by 24.9% during the third quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund now owns 11,757,961 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $640,624,000 after acquiring an additional 2,346,995 shares during the period. CIBC Asset Management Inc grew its position in Bank of Nova Scotia by 1.8% during the fourth quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 10,259,279 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $551,766,000 after acquiring an additional 184,761 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in Bank of Nova Scotia by 10.3% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 5,640,471 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $310,817,000 after acquiring an additional 524,496 shares during the period. Finally, BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp grew its position in Bank of Nova Scotia by 260.1% during the third quarter. BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp now owns 5,480,486 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $298,575,000 after acquiring an additional 3,958,580 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 49.13% of the company’s stock.

Bank of Nova Scotia Trading Down 1.0 %

NYSE:BNS opened at $47.86 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a current ratio of 1.03. The Bank of Nova Scotia has a one year low of $43.67 and a one year high of $57.07. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $51.01 and its 200 day simple moving average is $52.53. The stock has a market cap of $59.60 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.08, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.16 and a beta of 1.11.

Bank of Nova Scotia Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 28th. Investors of record on Tuesday, April 1st will be paid a $0.7415 dividend. This represents a $2.97 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.20%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 1st. Bank of Nova Scotia’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 82.77%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

BNS has been the subject of several analyst reports. CIBC reaffirmed a “neutral” rating on shares of Bank of Nova Scotia in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. Canaccord Genuity Group raised Bank of Nova Scotia from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 19th. UBS Group raised Bank of Nova Scotia from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, November 18th. Barclays raised Bank of Nova Scotia from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 21st. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group raised Bank of Nova Scotia from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 19th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $75.50.

Bank of Nova Scotia Company Profile

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.