Bank of Nova Scotia (NYSE:BNS) Reaches New 52-Week High – What’s Next?

Bank of Nova Scotia (The) (NYSE:BNS) (TSE:BNS)’s share price hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Friday . The company traded as high as $74.98 and last traded at $74.9270, with a volume of 1150978 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $74.40.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the stock. Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their target price on shares of Bank of Nova Scotia from $86.00 to $97.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 3rd. Raymond James Financial assumed coverage on Bank of Nova Scotia in a report on Tuesday, November 25th. They issued an “outperform” rating on the stock. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Bank of Nova Scotia in a report on Monday, December 29th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $97.00.

Bank of Nova Scotia Trading Up 0.7%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70, a quick ratio of 1.04 and a current ratio of 1.04. The stock has a market capitalization of $92.51 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.64, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.97 and a beta of 1.11. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $71.65 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $64.82.

Bank of Nova Scotia (NYSE:BNS) (TSE:BNS) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, December 2nd. The bank reported $1.39 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.33 by $0.06. The company had revenue of $6.99 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.85 billion. Bank of Nova Scotia had a return on equity of 12.10% and a net margin of 10.60%.The firm’s revenue was up 15.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.57 earnings per share. On average, research analysts forecast that Bank of Nova Scotia will post 4.91 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Bank of Nova Scotia Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 28th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, January 6th will be given a dividend of $1.10 per share. This represents a $4.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, January 6th. Bank of Nova Scotia’s payout ratio is presently 79.85%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Mondrian Investment Partners LTD bought a new position in Bank of Nova Scotia in the third quarter worth $30,000. Cypress Capital Management LLC WY purchased a new stake in shares of Bank of Nova Scotia in the 2nd quarter worth about $33,000. Quarry LP bought a new position in shares of Bank of Nova Scotia in the 3rd quarter worth about $35,000. Virtus Advisers LLC bought a new position in shares of Bank of Nova Scotia in the 3rd quarter worth about $39,000. Finally, Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. purchased a new position in Bank of Nova Scotia during the 3rd quarter valued at about $45,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 49.13% of the company’s stock.

About Bank of Nova Scotia

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.