Analysts Set The Bank of Nova Scotia (NYSE:BNS) PT at $75.50

The Bank of Nova Scotia (NYSE:BNS) (TSE:BNS) has received an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the nine research firms that are presently covering the firm, MarketBeat reports. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and five have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year target price among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $81.00.

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the stock. CIBC reiterated a “neutral” rating on shares of Bank of Nova Scotia in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their price target on shares of Bank of Nova Scotia from $83.00 to $81.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. Finally, Cibc World Mkts lowered shares of Bank of Nova Scotia from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 18th.

Bank of Nova Scotia Stock Down 0.2 %

NYSE:BNS opened at $48.01 on Tuesday. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $50.15 and its 200 day simple moving average is $52.42. 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 has a one year low of $43.68 and a one year high of $57.07. The company has a market cap of $59.80 billion, a PE ratio of 11.11, a P/E/G ratio of 1.16 and a beta of 1.11.

Bank of Nova Scotia Cuts Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 28th. Stockholders 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 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.18%. Bank of Nova Scotia’s dividend payout ratio is currently 82.77%.

Institutional Trading of Bank of Nova Scotia

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of BNS. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Bank of Nova Scotia in the 4th quarter valued at $690,746,000. BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp increased its stake in shares of Bank of Nova Scotia by 260.1% in the 3rd quarter. BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp now owns 5,480,486 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $298,575,000 after acquiring an additional 3,958,580 shares in the last quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund increased its stake in shares of Bank of Nova Scotia by 24.9% in the 3rd quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund now owns 11,757,961 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $640,624,000 after acquiring an additional 2,346,995 shares in the last quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank increased its stake in shares of Bank of Nova Scotia by 9.6% in the 3rd quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank now owns 24,990,868 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $1,361,752,000 after acquiring an additional 2,195,604 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI bought a new stake in shares of Bank of Nova Scotia in the 4th quarter valued at $96,529,000. 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.