Bank of Nova Scotia (The) (NYSE:BNS) Shares Acquired by Bank of New York Mellon Corp

Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its holdings in Bank of Nova Scotia (The) (NYSE:BNS - Free Report) TSE: BNS by 5.5% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 1,155,791 shares of the bank's stock after acquiring an additional 60,506 shares during the quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp owned about 0.09% of Bank of Nova Scotia worth $54,819,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC increased its stake in Bank of Nova Scotia by 4.3% in the first quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 10,801 shares of the bank's stock valued at $512,000 after purchasing an additional 442 shares during the last quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. grew its position in shares of Bank of Nova Scotia by 3.2% in the 1st quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. now owns 14,938 shares of the bank's stock valued at $709,000 after buying an additional 466 shares during the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC raised its stake in Bank of Nova Scotia by 54.9% during the 4th quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 22,629 shares of the bank's stock worth $1,216,000 after acquiring an additional 8,018 shares in the last quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC lifted its position in Bank of Nova Scotia by 11.8% in the fourth quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 11,438 shares of the bank's stock valued at $614,000 after acquiring an additional 1,207 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Dynamic Advisor Solutions LLC boosted its stake in Bank of Nova Scotia by 14.8% in the first quarter. Dynamic Advisor Solutions LLC now owns 4,634 shares of the bank's stock valued at $220,000 after acquiring an additional 596 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 49.13% of the company's stock.

Bank of Nova Scotia Stock Performance

BNS stock traded up $0.55 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $55.05. The company had a trading volume of 3,643,480 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,784,439. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $53.41 and a 200-day moving average price of $50.91. The company has a quick ratio of 1.03, a current ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62. The firm has a market cap of $68.44 billion, a PE ratio of 16.14, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.37 and a beta of 1.12. Bank of Nova Scotia has a 1-year low of $43.68 and a 1-year high of $57.07.

Bank of Nova Scotia (NYSE:BNS - Get Free Report) TSE: BNS last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, May 27th. The bank reported $1.06 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.14 by ($0.08). Bank of Nova Scotia had a net margin of 8.83% and a return on equity of 11.27%. The company had revenue of $6.59 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $8.98 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.58 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 8.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts expect that Bank of Nova Scotia will post 4.91 earnings per share for the current year.

Bank of Nova Scotia Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 29th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, July 2nd will be given a dividend of $0.7996 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, July 2nd. This represents a $3.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.81%. This is an increase from Bank of Nova Scotia's previous quarterly dividend of $0.74. Bank of Nova Scotia's dividend payout ratio is presently 94.72%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have recently commented on BNS shares. Bank of America cut Bank of Nova Scotia from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, March 31st. Wall Street Zen lowered Bank of Nova Scotia from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Saturday, June 21st. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $81.00.

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.