The Bank of Nova Scotia (NYSE:BNS) Short Interest Up 22.8% in September

The Bank of Nova Scotia (NYSE:BNS) (TSE:BNS) saw a large increase in short interest in September. As of September 15th, there was short interest totalling 29,550,000 shares, an increase of 22.8% from the August 31st total of 24,070,000 shares. Currently, 2.4% of the company’s stock are short sold. Based on an average daily volume of 1,650,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 17.9 days.

Bank of Nova Scotia Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:BNS traded down $0.06 on Monday, reaching $54.38. 177,705 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,813,436. The company has a current ratio of 1.02, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61. Bank of Nova Scotia has a twelve month low of $39.79 and a twelve month high of $55.12. The company has a fifty day moving average of $49.00 and a 200-day moving average of $48.09. The company has a market capitalization of $66.86 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.26, a PEG ratio of 1.71 and a beta of 1.04.

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

Bank of Nova Scotia Cuts Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 29th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, October 2nd will be paid a $0.768 dividend. This represents a $3.07 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.65%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, October 2nd. Bank of Nova Scotia’s payout ratio is 70.72%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Bank of Nova Scotia

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of BNS. Mather Group LLC. raised its stake in shares of Bank of Nova Scotia by 1,388.9% during the second quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 536 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 500 shares during the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. raised its position in Bank of Nova Scotia by 3,127.8% during the 2nd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 581 shares of the bank’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 563 shares during the last quarter. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC lifted its holdings in Bank of Nova Scotia by 70.6% during the 1st 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 acquired a new stake in shares of Bank of Nova Scotia in the first quarter valued at about $53,000. Finally, Galibier Capital Management Ltd. bought a new position in shares of Bank of Nova Scotia during the first quarter worth about $76,000. 49.13% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on BNS shares. UBS Group started coverage on shares of Bank of Nova Scotia in a research note on Tuesday, July 2nd. They set a “neutral” rating on the stock. Cibc World Mkts upgraded Bank of Nova Scotia from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, September 20th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $69.00.

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.