Letko Brosseau & Associates Inc. Sells 254,275 Shares of Bank of Nova Scotia (The) $BNS

Letko Brosseau & Associates Inc. cut its stake in Bank of Nova Scotia (The) (NYSE:BNS) (TSE:BNS) by 6.4% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 3,725,790 shares of the bank’s stock after selling 254,275 shares during the period. Bank of Nova Scotia accounts for 4.5% of Letko Brosseau & Associates Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its largest position. Letko Brosseau & Associates Inc. owned approximately 0.30% of Bank of Nova Scotia worth $275,150,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Mondrian Investment Partners LTD acquired a new stake in Bank of Nova Scotia in the third quarter valued at $30,000. Quarry LP acquired a new stake in Bank of Nova Scotia in the third quarter valued at $35,000. Virtus Advisers LLC acquired a new stake in Bank of Nova Scotia in the third quarter valued at $39,000. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Bank of Nova Scotia in the fourth quarter valued at $50,000. Finally, Fifth Third Bancorp raised its holdings in Bank of Nova Scotia by 79.2% in the fourth quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 688 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $51,000 after acquiring an additional 304 shares in the last quarter. 49.13% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Bank of Nova Scotia Stock Up 0.8%

BNS stock opened at $81.58 on Wednesday. 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 has a fifty-two week low of $53.72 and a fifty-two week high of $82.22. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $76.34 and its 200 day simple moving average is $74.07. The stock has a market cap of $99.94 billion, a PE ratio of 15.57, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.99 and a beta of 1.12.

Bank of Nova Scotia (NYSE:BNS) (TSE:BNS) last released its quarterly earnings data 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. Bank of Nova Scotia had a net margin of 13.38% and a return on equity of 13.16%. The business had revenue of $7.24 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.13 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.52 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Bank of Nova Scotia will post 6.05 EPS for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms recently issued reports on BNS. Canaccord Genuity Group cut shares of Bank of Nova Scotia from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, March 9th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Bank of Nova Scotia in a report on Friday, May 22nd. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their target price on shares of Bank of Nova Scotia from $98.00 to $117.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Thursday, May 28th. Finally, TD Securities reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Bank of Nova Scotia in a report on Tuesday, March 3rd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently 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.