Alliancebernstein L.P. Acquires 62,880 Shares of The Bank of Nova Scotia (NYSE:BNS)

Alliancebernstein L.P. boosted its holdings in shares of The Bank of Nova Scotia (NYSE:BNS) (TSE:BNS) by 66.5% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 157,398 shares of the bank’s stock after purchasing an additional 62,880 shares during the quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P.’s holdings in Bank of Nova Scotia were worth $8,455,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in BNS. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Bank of Nova Scotia by 1.9% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 51,363,146 shares of the bank’s stock worth $2,758,150,000 after acquiring an additional 969,488 shares during the last quarter. TD Asset Management Inc. raised its holdings in Bank of Nova Scotia by 1.7% during the 4th quarter. TD Asset Management Inc. now owns 18,966,078 shares of the bank’s stock worth $1,017,933,000 after purchasing an additional 308,837 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Bank of Nova Scotia in the 4th quarter worth approximately $690,746,000. CIBC Asset Management Inc boosted its stake in shares of Bank of Nova Scotia by 1.8% in the 4th quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 10,259,279 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $551,766,000 after purchasing an additional 184,761 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. increased its position in shares of Bank of Nova Scotia by 5.0% during the fourth quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. now owns 8,096,123 shares of the bank’s stock worth $434,196,000 after buying an additional 385,333 shares during the period. 49.13% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Bank of Nova Scotia Price Performance

BNS stock opened at $46.06 on Friday. The Bank of Nova Scotia has a 1 year low of $43.68 and a 1 year high of $57.07. The stock has a market capitalization of $57.37 billion, a PE ratio of 10.66, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.16 and a beta of 1.02. The company’s 50-day moving average is $48.65 and its 200-day moving average is $51.78. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59, a current ratio of 1.03 and a quick ratio of 1.03.

Bank of Nova Scotia Cuts Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 28th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 1st will be paid a $0.7415 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, April 1st. This represents a $2.97 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.44%. Bank of Nova Scotia’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 82.77%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

BNS has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. CIBC reaffirmed a “neutral” rating on shares of Bank of Nova Scotia in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. Cibc World Mkts lowered Bank of Nova Scotia from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their target price on Bank of Nova Scotia from $83.00 to $81.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. Finally, Bank of America lowered Bank of Nova Scotia from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, March 31st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Bank of Nova Scotia presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $81.00.

Bank of Nova Scotia Company Profile

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.