PDS Planning Inc Lowers Stake in The Bank of Nova Scotia (NYSE:BNS)

PDS Planning Inc lowered its position in shares of The Bank of Nova Scotia (NYSE:BNS) (TSE:BNS) by 11.4% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 5,219 shares of the bank’s stock after selling 672 shares during the quarter. PDS Planning Inc’s holdings in Bank of Nova Scotia were worth $254,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in BNS. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Bank of Nova Scotia by 135.6% during the third quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 919 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $42,000 after buying an additional 529 shares during the last quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP bought a new stake in shares of Bank of Nova Scotia during the third quarter valued at approximately $42,000. Fifth Third Bancorp raised its position in shares of Bank of Nova Scotia by 71.6% during the fourth quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 858 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $42,000 after buying an additional 358 shares during the last quarter. NBC Securities Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Bank of Nova Scotia during the third quarter valued at approximately $67,000. Finally, Motco raised its position in shares of Bank of Nova Scotia by 1,086.2% during the third quarter. Motco now owns 2,491 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $114,000 after buying an additional 2,281 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 49.13% of the company’s stock.

Bank of Nova Scotia Trading Up 0.4 %

Shares of BNS opened at $47.29 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a current ratio of 1.03. The company’s fifty day moving average is $48.98 and its 200 day moving average is $46.43. The stock has a market capitalization of $57.80 billion, a PE ratio of 10.46, a P/E/G ratio of 1.56 and a beta of 1.04. The Bank of Nova Scotia has a fifty-two week low of $39.79 and a fifty-two week high of $51.98.

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

Bank of Nova Scotia Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 26th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 2nd will be paid a dividend of $0.7843 per share. This represents a $3.14 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.63%. This is a positive change from Bank of Nova Scotia’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.78. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, April 1st. Bank of Nova Scotia’s payout ratio is presently 34.96%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages recently weighed in on BNS. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on shares of Bank of Nova Scotia in a research report on Thursday, February 22nd. They issued a “hold” rating on the stock. Barclays began coverage on shares of Bank of Nova Scotia in a research report on Wednesday, March 20th. They issued an “underweight” rating and a $70.00 price target on the stock. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and four have issued a hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Bank of Nova Scotia has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $68.00.

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.