Nuveen LLC Invests $41.42 Million in Bank of Nova Scotia (The) $BNS

Key Points

• Nuveen LLC purchased 873,668 shares of Bank of Nova Scotia, totaling approximately $41.4 million, representing about 0.07% ownership in the bank.
• Bank of Nova Scotia recently disclosed an increase in its quarterly dividend to $0.7996, yielding approximately 5.6%, an uptick from the previous dividend of $0.74.
• Wall Street analysts have varied ratings on Bank of Nova Scotia, with one analyst downgrading the stock to "sell" while others have issued hold and buy ratings, resulting in an average rating of "Hold."

Nuveen LLC acquired a new stake in Bank of Nova Scotia (The) (NYSE:BNS - Free Report) TSE: BNS during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 873,668 shares of the bank's stock, valued at approximately $41,418,000. Nuveen LLC owned 0.07% of Bank of Nova Scotia at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Bank of Nova Scotia by 3.5% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 53,184,171 shares of the bank's stock valued at $2,521,621,000 after purchasing an additional 1,821,025 shares during the period. Toronto Dominion Bank grew its position in shares of Bank of Nova Scotia by 1.7% during the 4th quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank now owns 25,425,639 shares of the bank's stock worth $1,363,619,000 after buying an additional 434,771 shares during the period. Mackenzie Financial Corp raised its position in shares of Bank of Nova Scotia by 2.5% in the 1st quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 15,158,112 shares of the bank's stock valued at $718,670,000 after acquiring an additional 374,487 shares during the period. Scotia Capital Inc. boosted its stake in Bank of Nova Scotia by 0.8% during the 1st quarter. Scotia Capital Inc. now owns 14,141,532 shares of the bank's stock worth $670,495,000 after acquiring an additional 117,272 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. grew its holdings in Bank of Nova Scotia by 255.9% during the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 10,174,780 shares of the bank's stock valued at $482,590,000 after purchasing an additional 7,315,915 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 49.13% of the company's stock.

Bank of Nova Scotia Stock Up 0.1%

Shares of NYSE:BNS traded up $0.0650 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $56.7250. 811,650 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,969,775. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $55.36 and its 200-day simple moving average is $51.60. Bank of Nova Scotia has a one year low of $44.09 and a one year high of $57.07. The company has a market cap of $70.48 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.63, a P/E/G ratio of 1.45 and a beta of 1.14. The company has a quick ratio of 1.03, a current ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62.

Bank of Nova Scotia (NYSE:BNS - Get Free Report) TSE: BNS last released its earnings results on Tuesday, May 27th. The bank reported $1.06 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.14 by ($0.08). The firm had revenue of $6.59 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.98 billion. Bank of Nova Scotia had a net margin of 8.83% and a return on equity of 11.27%. The company's revenue was up 8.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.58 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Bank of Nova Scotia will post 4.91 EPS for the current year.

Bank of Nova Scotia Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, July 29th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, July 2nd were given a $0.7996 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, July 2nd. This is a positive change from Bank of Nova Scotia's previous quarterly dividend of $0.74. This represents a $3.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.6%. Bank of Nova Scotia's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 94.72%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, Wall Street Zen downgraded Bank of Nova Scotia from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Saturday, June 21st. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $81.00.

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.