20,688 Bank of Nova Scotia (The) $BNS Shares Sold by Montrusco Bolton Investments Inc.

Montrusco Bolton Investments Inc. lowered its stake in Bank of Nova Scotia (The) (NYSE:BNS) (TSE:BNS) by 6.8% in the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 284,891 shares of the bank’s stock after selling 20,688 shares during the quarter. Montrusco Bolton Investments Inc.’s holdings in Bank of Nova Scotia were worth $25,968,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board bought a new stake in shares of Bank of Nova Scotia during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $1,016,738,000. Legal & General Group Plc bought a new stake in shares of Bank of Nova Scotia during the second quarter worth $709,837,000. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. bought a new stake in shares of Bank of Nova Scotia during the second quarter worth $567,278,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its stake in shares of Bank of Nova Scotia by 2.6% during the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 6,008,689 shares of the bank’s stock worth $416,415,000 after buying an additional 154,541 shares during the last quarter. Finally, The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company acquired a new position in shares of Bank of Nova Scotia during the second quarter worth $416,397,000. 49.13% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Bank of Nova Scotia Trading Up 1.6%

Shares of BNS traded up $1.46 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $90.25. 2,173,737 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,341,660. Bank of Nova Scotia has a 52 week low of $62.98 and a 52 week high of $95.74. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.98, a quick ratio of 1.04 and a current ratio of 1.04. The stock has a market capitalization of $109.82 billion, a PE ratio of 16.33, a PEG ratio of 0.99 and a beta of 1.14. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $91.28 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $84.40.

Bank of Nova Scotia (NYSE:BNS) (TSE:BNS) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, August 25th. The bank reported $1.64 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.53 by $0.11. Bank of Nova Scotia had a net margin of 13.91% and a return on equity of 16.12%. The business had revenue of $7.52 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.11 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.84 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts predict that Bank of Nova Scotia will post 6.19 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Bank of Nova Scotia Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 28th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, October 6th will be paid a C$1.14 dividend. This represents a $4.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, October 6th. Bank of Nova Scotia’s dividend payout ratio is currently 57.87%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods initiated coverage on Bank of Nova Scotia in a research report on Friday, August 21st. They set an “outperform” rating on the stock. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Bank of Nova Scotia from a “buy (a-)” rating to a “buy (a)” rating in a report on Thursday. National Bank Financial upgraded shares of Bank of Nova Scotia from a “sector perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 26th. TD upgraded shares of Bank of Nova Scotia to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 26th. Finally, TD Securities raised shares of Bank of Nova Scotia from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 25th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have assigned a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Bank of Nova Scotia has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $105.50.

Bank of Nova Scotia Profile

Bank of Nova Scotia, commonly known as Scotiabank, is a Canadian financial services company headquartered in Toronto, Ontario. Founded in 1832, it is one of Canada’s largest banks and provides a broad range of banking and financial services to individuals, businesses, institutions and governments.

Scotiabank’s principal activities include Canadian personal and commercial banking, wealth management, and global banking and markets. Its products and services include deposit accounts, residential mortgages, consumer and business loans, credit cards, investment and advisory services, foreign exchange, capital markets and corporate finance.

The bank serves customers across Canada and maintains international operations, particularly in Mexico, Peru, Chile and selected markets in the Caribbean and Central America.