Bank of Nova Scotia (NYSE:BNS) Sets New 12-Month High at $53.28

The Bank of Nova Scotia (NYSE:BNS) (TSE:BNS)’s stock price hit a new 52-week high during trading on Thursday . The company traded as high as $53.28 and last traded at $53.15, with a volume of 21198 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $52.43.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

BNS has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. UBS Group initiated coverage on Bank of Nova Scotia in a research report on Tuesday, July 2nd. They issued a “neutral” rating for the company. StockNews.com downgraded Bank of Nova Scotia from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 29th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and three have issued a hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $69.00.

Bank of Nova Scotia Stock Performance

The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $48.04 and a 200-day simple moving average of $47.90. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61, a current ratio of 1.02 and a quick ratio of 1.02. The stock has a market cap of $65.23 billion, a PE ratio of 11.81, a P/E/G ratio of 1.64 and a beta of 1.04.

Bank of Nova Scotia (NYSE:BNS) (TSE:BNS) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 27th. The bank reported $1.63 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.62 by $0.01. Bank of Nova Scotia had a return on equity of 11.14% and a net margin of 9.84%. The firm had revenue of $8.36 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.53 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.30 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 3.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts predict that The Bank of Nova Scotia will post 4.8 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Bank of Nova Scotia Cuts Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 29th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, October 2nd will be given a $0.768 dividend. This represents a $3.07 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.79%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, October 2nd. Bank of Nova Scotia’s payout ratio is 70.72%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Bank of Nova Scotia

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Mather Group LLC. boosted its position in shares of Bank of Nova Scotia by 1,388.9% in the second quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 536 shares of the bank’s stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 500 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its position in shares of Bank of Nova Scotia by 3,127.8% in the second quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 581 shares of the bank’s stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 563 shares during the period. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC boosted its position in shares of Bank of Nova Scotia by 70.6% in the first quarter. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC now owns 585 shares of the bank’s stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 242 shares during the period. Headlands Technologies LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Bank of Nova Scotia in the first quarter worth about $53,000. Finally, Galibier Capital Management Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of Bank of Nova Scotia in the first quarter worth about $76,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 49.13% of the company’s stock.

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.