Bank of Nova Scotia (NYSE:BNS) Receives New Coverage from Analysts at UBS Group

UBS Group assumed coverage on shares of Bank of Nova Scotia (NYSE:BNS) (TSE:BNS) in a report released on Tuesday, Marketbeat Ratings reports. The firm issued a neutral rating on the bank’s stock.

Other research analysts also recently issued reports about the company. Barclays started coverage on Bank of Nova Scotia in a report on Wednesday, March 20th. They set an underweight rating and a $70.00 target price on the stock. StockNews.com downgraded Bank of Nova Scotia from a hold rating to a sell rating in a report on Wednesday, May 29th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and four have assigned a hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Bank of Nova Scotia presently has an average rating of Hold and an average target price of $68.00.

Bank of Nova Scotia Trading Down 0.5 %

Shares of BNS stock opened at $45.21 on Tuesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $55.58 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.23, a P/E/G ratio of 1.68 and a beta of 1.04. Bank of Nova Scotia has a twelve month low of $39.79 and a twelve month high of $51.98. The company has a quick ratio of 1.03, a current ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $46.86 and its 200 day simple moving average is $47.62.

Bank of Nova Scotia (NYSE:BNS) (TSE:BNS) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 28th. The bank reported $1.16 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.14 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $6.15 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.10 billion. Bank of Nova Scotia had a return on equity of 11.40% and a net margin of 10.40%. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Bank of Nova Scotia will post 4.82 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Bank of Nova Scotia Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, July 29th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, July 3rd will be paid a $0.769 dividend. This represents a $3.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.80%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, July 3rd. Bank of Nova Scotia’s dividend payout ratio is 69.37%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in BNS. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC lifted its stake in shares of Bank of Nova Scotia by 70.6% in the 1st quarter. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC now owns 585 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 242 shares during the period. Fifth Third Bancorp lifted its stake in shares of Bank of Nova Scotia by 71.6% in the 4th quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 858 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $42,000 after purchasing an additional 358 shares during the period. Global Retirement Partners LLC lifted its stake in shares of Bank of Nova Scotia by 144.6% in the 1st quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 959 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $50,000 after purchasing an additional 567 shares during the period. Headlands Technologies LLC acquired a new position in shares of Bank of Nova Scotia in the 1st quarter valued at about $53,000. Finally, Galibier Capital Management Ltd. bought a new stake in Bank of Nova Scotia in the 1st quarter valued at about $76,000. 49.13% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.