Nicola Wealth Management LTD. Has $33.45 Million Holdings in Bank of Nova Scotia (The) $BNS

Nicola Wealth Management LTD. lessened its holdings in shares of Bank of Nova Scotia (The) (NYSE:BNS) (TSE:BNS) by 79.6% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 517,300 shares of the bank’s stock after selling 2,017,800 shares during the period. Bank of Nova Scotia accounts for about 3.0% of Nicola Wealth Management LTD.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 6th biggest holding. Nicola Wealth Management LTD.’s holdings in Bank of Nova Scotia were worth $33,452,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in BNS. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Bank of Nova Scotia in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $838,738,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its stake in shares of Bank of Nova Scotia by 83.4% in the second quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 13,148,255 shares of the bank’s stock worth $726,704,000 after purchasing an additional 5,979,338 shares in the last quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc increased its holdings in shares of Bank of Nova Scotia by 44.3% during the third quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 9,800,305 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $635,730,000 after purchasing an additional 3,007,407 shares during the period. OMERS ADMINISTRATION Corp raised its stake in shares of Bank of Nova Scotia by 555.8% during the second quarter. OMERS ADMINISTRATION Corp now owns 3,062,126 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $168,984,000 after purchasing an additional 2,595,186 shares in the last quarter. Finally, BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp lifted its holdings in Bank of Nova Scotia by 315.0% in the second quarter. BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp now owns 2,873,828 shares of the bank’s stock worth $159,014,000 after purchasing an additional 2,181,312 shares during the period. 49.13% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

BNS has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Raymond James Financial initiated coverage on shares of Bank of Nova Scotia in a research report on Tuesday, November 25th. They set an “outperform” rating on the stock. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their target price on 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. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Bank of Nova Scotia in a research note on Monday, December 29th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $97.00.

Bank of Nova Scotia Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:BNS opened at $75.08 on Tuesday. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $71.95 and a 200-day moving average of $65.24. The company has a market capitalization of $92.70 billion, a PE ratio of 18.68, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.98 and a beta of 1.11. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70, a quick ratio of 1.04 and a current ratio of 1.04. Bank of Nova Scotia has a one year low of $44.09 and a one year high of $75.47.

Bank of Nova Scotia (NYSE:BNS) (TSE:BNS) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, December 2nd. The bank reported $1.39 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.33 by $0.06. Bank of Nova Scotia had a return on equity of 12.10% and a net margin of 10.60%.The business had revenue of $6.99 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.85 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.57 EPS. Bank of Nova Scotia’s revenue for the quarter was up 15.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Bank of Nova Scotia will post 4.91 EPS 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, 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 is Tuesday, January 6th. Bank of Nova Scotia’s payout ratio is presently 79.85%.

Bank of Nova Scotia Company 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.