Bank of Nova Scotia (The) $BNS Shares Sold by Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio

Key Points

• The Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio reduced its stake in Bank of Nova Scotia by 26.5%, selling 33,290 shares and now holds 92,256 shares valued at over $5 million.
• Several institutional investors increased their positions in the bank, with notable increases including Independence Bank of Kentucky raising its holdings by 38.4%.
• Bank of Nova Scotia's stock was recently upgraded from a "sell" to a "hold" rating, with the average price target set at $86.00.

Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio decreased its position in shares of Bank of Nova Scotia (The) (NYSE:BNS - Free Report) TSE: BNS by 26.5% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 92,256 shares of the bank's stock after selling 33,290 shares during the quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio's holdings in Bank of Nova Scotia were worth $5,092,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of BNS. Sara Bay Financial lifted its position in Bank of Nova Scotia by 6.2% in the first quarter. Sara Bay Financial now owns 5,021 shares of the bank's stock valued at $240,000 after buying an additional 294 shares during the last quarter. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. lifted its position in Bank of Nova Scotia by 0.5% in the first quarter. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. now owns 58,073 shares of the bank's stock valued at $2,754,000 after buying an additional 298 shares during the last quarter. Orca Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in Bank of Nova Scotia by 1.9% in the first quarter. Orca Wealth Management LLC now owns 16,839 shares of the bank's stock valued at $799,000 after buying an additional 307 shares during the last quarter. Independence Bank of Kentucky lifted its position in Bank of Nova Scotia by 38.4% in the first quarter. Independence Bank of Kentucky now owns 1,175 shares of the bank's stock valued at $56,000 after buying an additional 326 shares during the last quarter. Finally, HB Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in Bank of Nova Scotia by 8.0% in the first quarter. HB Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,406 shares of the bank's stock valued at $209,000 after buying an additional 327 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 49.13% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

BNS has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Bank of Nova Scotia from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, August 30th. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their target price on shares of Bank of Nova Scotia from $80.00 to $86.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 27th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Bank of Nova Scotia presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $86.00.

Bank of Nova Scotia Stock Up 0.6%

BNS stock opened at $64.78 on Tuesday. The company's 50 day moving average price is $60.00 and its 200 day moving average price is $54.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a current ratio of 1.03. Bank of Nova Scotia has a fifty-two week low of $44.09 and a fifty-two week high of $65.19. The firm has a market capitalization of $80.36 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.41, a PEG ratio of 1.47 and a beta of 1.16.

Bank of Nova Scotia (NYSE:BNS - Get Free Report) TSE: BNS last released its earnings results on Tuesday, August 26th. The bank reported $1.37 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.28 by $0.09. Bank of Nova Scotia had a net margin of 9.74% and a return on equity of 11.61%. The firm had revenue of $6.85 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.29 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.63 earnings per share. The business's quarterly revenue was up 13.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Bank of Nova Scotia will post 4.91 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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.

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