Bank of Nova Scotia (TSE:BNS) Hits New 52-Week High - Time to Buy?

Key Points

• The Bank of Nova Scotia reached a new 52-week high of C$86.42 in mid-day trading, with a recent trading volume of over 1.4 million shares.
• Recent analyst reports have set new price targets for the stock, with CIBC raising it from C$77.00 to C$90.00, indicating a generally positive outlook.
• The bank declared a quarterly dividend of $1.10 per share, which represents an annualized dividend of $4.40 and a yield of 5.1%, up from the previous dividend of $1.06.

The Bank of Nova Scotia (TSE:BNS - Get Free Report) NYSE: BNS shares reached a new 52-week high on Wednesday . The company traded as high as C$86.42 and last traded at C$86.39, with a volume of 1431804 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at C$85.62.

Analyst Ratings Changes

BNS has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Canaccord Genuity Group raised their price target on shares of Bank of Nova Scotia from C$87.00 to C$90.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 27th. UBS Group lowered their price target on shares of Bank of Nova Scotia from C$85.00 to C$78.00 in a report on Thursday, May 22nd. TD Securities raised their price target on shares of Bank of Nova Scotia from C$87.00 to C$93.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 27th. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their price target on shares of Bank of Nova Scotia from C$80.00 to C$86.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 27th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price target on shares of Bank of Nova Scotia from C$83.00 to C$86.00 in a research note on Wednesday, August 27th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have assigned a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Bank of Nova Scotia presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of C$85.85.

Bank of Nova Scotia Stock Performance

The company's fifty day moving average price is C$78.39 and its 200 day moving average price is C$72.99. The firm has a market capitalization of C$109.71 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.88, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.33 and a beta of 1.35.

Bank of Nova Scotia Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, July 29th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, July 29th were issued a $1.10 dividend. This is a boost from Bank of Nova Scotia's previous quarterly dividend of $1.06. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, July 2nd. This represents a $4.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.0%. Bank of Nova Scotia's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 81.84%.

About Bank of Nova Scotia

Bank of Nova Scotia is a global financial services provider. The bank has five business segments: Canadian banking, international banking, global wealth management, global banking and markets, and other. It offers a range of advice, products, and services, including personal and commercial banking, wealth management and private banking, corporate and investment banking, and capital markets.