PNC Financial Services Group Inc. Boosts Holdings in The Bank of Nova Scotia (NYSE:BNS)

PNC Financial Services Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of The Bank of Nova Scotia (NYSE:BNS) (TSE:BNS) by 52.9% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 13,825 shares of the bank’s stock after purchasing an additional 4,784 shares during the quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc.’s holdings in Bank of Nova Scotia were worth $743,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of BNS. Magnus Financial Group LLC lifted its holdings in Bank of Nova Scotia by 4.1% in the fourth quarter. Magnus Financial Group LLC now owns 5,100 shares of the bank’s stock worth $274,000 after buying an additional 200 shares during the period. Private Advisor Group LLC lifted its stake in shares of Bank of Nova Scotia by 3.5% in the 4th quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 6,248 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $336,000 after purchasing an additional 211 shares during the period. Lindbrook Capital LLC lifted its stake in shares of Bank of Nova Scotia by 10.2% in the 4th quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 2,860 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $154,000 after purchasing an additional 264 shares during the period. Merit Financial Group LLC boosted its position in shares of Bank of Nova Scotia by 5.8% during the fourth quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC now owns 4,905 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $264,000 after purchasing an additional 271 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Addison Advisors LLC grew its stake in Bank of Nova Scotia by 9.8% in the fourth quarter. Addison Advisors LLC now owns 3,685 shares of the bank’s stock worth $198,000 after purchasing an additional 328 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 49.13% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

BNS has been the topic of a number of research reports. Barclays upgraded shares of Bank of Nova Scotia from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, November 21st. Royal Bank of Canada dropped their price objective on shares of Bank of Nova Scotia from $83.00 to $81.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. Canaccord Genuity Group upgraded shares of Bank of Nova Scotia from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 19th. CIBC reiterated a “neutral” rating on shares of Bank of Nova Scotia in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. Finally, UBS Group raised Bank of Nova Scotia from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, November 18th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $75.50.

Bank of Nova Scotia Stock Performance

Shares of BNS stock opened at $48.76 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $60.73 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.29, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.16 and a beta of 1.11. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a current ratio of 1.03. The Bank of Nova Scotia has a one year low of $43.68 and a one year high of $57.07. The company’s 50-day moving average is $50.43 and its 200 day moving average is $52.48.

Bank of Nova Scotia Cuts Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 28th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, April 1st will be issued a dividend of $0.7415 per share. This represents a $2.97 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.08%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 1st. Bank of Nova Scotia’s payout ratio is 82.77%.

About Bank of Nova Scotia

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.