Dimensional Fund Advisors LP Has $252.69 Million Stake in Bank of Nova Scotia (The) $BNS

Key Points

• Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its stake in Bank of Nova Scotia by 3.4%, acquiring an additional 177,542 shares, bringing its total ownership to 5,327,412 shares worth approximately $252.7 million.
• Bank of Nova Scotia recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.7996 per share, which marks an increase from its previous dividend and represents an annual yield of 5.6%.
• Following a downgrade from Wall Street Zen from "hold" to "sell", the stock currently holds an average rating of "Hold" with a consensus target price of $81.00.

Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its holdings in Bank of Nova Scotia (The) (NYSE:BNS - Free Report) TSE: BNS by 3.4% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 5,327,412 shares of the bank's stock after purchasing an additional 177,542 shares during the quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP owned approximately 0.43% of Bank of Nova Scotia worth $252,685,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of BNS. Compagnie Lombard Odier SCmA bought a new position in Bank of Nova Scotia in the first quarter valued at approximately $52,000. Independence Bank of Kentucky boosted its position in shares of Bank of Nova Scotia by 38.4% in the 1st quarter. Independence Bank of Kentucky now owns 1,175 shares of the bank's stock worth $56,000 after purchasing an additional 326 shares during the last quarter. North Capital Inc. bought a new position in shares of Bank of Nova Scotia in the 1st quarter worth $81,000. Dunhill Financial LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Bank of Nova Scotia during the fourth quarter worth $95,000. Finally, Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. increased its holdings in Bank of Nova Scotia by 11.2% in the first quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 3,343 shares of the bank's stock valued at $159,000 after purchasing an additional 336 shares during the last quarter. 49.13% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Bank of Nova Scotia Trading Up 1.8%

Shares of BNS stock traded up $0.9950 on Friday, hitting $57.6050. The stock had a trading volume of 1,323,143 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,966,491. The company has a current ratio of 1.03, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62. Bank of Nova Scotia has a twelve month low of $44.09 and a twelve month high of $57.70. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $55.47 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $51.69. The firm has a market cap of $71.57 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.89, a PEG ratio of 1.45 and a beta of 1.14.

Bank of Nova Scotia (NYSE:BNS - Get Free Report) TSE: BNS last posted 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 return on equity of 11.27% and a net margin of 8.83%.The business had revenue of $6.59 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.98 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.58 earnings per share. The business's revenue was up 8.8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts forecast that Bank of Nova Scotia will post 4.91 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Bank of Nova Scotia Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, July 29th. Investors of record on Wednesday, July 2nd were given a $0.7996 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, July 2nd. This represents a $3.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.6%. This is a boost from Bank of Nova Scotia's previous quarterly dividend of $0.74. Bank of Nova Scotia's payout ratio is presently 94.72%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, Wall Street Zen cut Bank of Nova Scotia from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Saturday, June 21st. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price 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.