Bank of Nova Scotia (The) $BNS Shares Sold by UBS Group AG

Key Points

• UBS Group AG trimmed its stake in Bank of Nova Scotia by 9.2% in Q4, selling 93,538 shares and ending the quarter with 927,693 shares (about 0.08% of the company) worth $68.36 million.
• Analyst coverage is mixed with a consensus rating of Hold and a $106 average price target; notable moves include RBC lifting its target to $106 and Weiss Ratings upgrading the stock to a buy while Canaccord downgraded it to hold.
• Scotiabank beat Q4 estimates with EPS of $1.48 (vs. $1.42 expected) and revenue of $7.40 billion (vs. $6.99 billion), and its shares were trading around $76.58 with a market cap of about $94.1 billion and a 1‑year range of $49.85–$78.55.

UBS Group AG reduced its position in shares of Bank of Nova Scotia (The) (NYSE:BNS - Free Report) TSE: BNS by 9.2% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 927,693 shares of the bank's stock after selling 93,538 shares during the period. UBS Group AG owned approximately 0.08% of Bank of Nova Scotia worth $68,362,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of BNS. AQR Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in Bank of Nova Scotia by 111.2% during the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 19,096 shares of the bank's stock worth $911,000 after acquiring an additional 10,056 shares during the period. Sivia Capital Partners LLC acquired a new position in Bank of Nova Scotia during the second quarter worth about $330,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Bank of Nova Scotia by 42.8% during the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 2,165 shares of the bank's stock worth $120,000 after acquiring an additional 649 shares during the period. Sei Investments Co. increased its stake in Bank of Nova Scotia by 2.1% in the 2nd quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 21,212 shares of the bank's stock worth $1,172,000 after purchasing an additional 434 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Quantinno Capital Management LP increased its stake in Bank of Nova Scotia by 61.1% in the 2nd quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 66,962 shares of the bank's stock worth $3,701,000 after purchasing an additional 25,400 shares in the last quarter. 49.13% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

BNS has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. TD Securities reissued a "hold" rating on shares of Bank of Nova Scotia in a research note on Tuesday, March 3rd. Weiss Ratings raised Bank of Nova Scotia from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "buy (b)" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 25th. Canaccord Genuity Group cut Bank of Nova Scotia from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, March 9th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their price target on Bank of Nova Scotia from $97.00 to $106.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 25th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $106.00.

Bank of Nova Scotia Trading Down 1.8%

Shares of BNS opened at $76.58 on Tuesday. Bank of Nova Scotia has a 1-year low of $49.85 and a 1-year high of $78.55. The stock has a market capitalization of $94.11 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.92, a P/E/G ratio of 0.94 and a beta of 1.13. The company has a current ratio of 1.05, a quick ratio of 1.05 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68. The business's 50-day moving average price is $72.67 and its 200 day moving average price is $71.65.

Bank of Nova Scotia (NYSE:BNS - Get Free Report) TSE: BNS last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 24th. The bank reported $1.48 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.42 by $0.06. Bank of Nova Scotia had a return on equity of 12.49% and a net margin of 12.40%.The firm had revenue of $7.40 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.99 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.76 EPS. The business's quarterly revenue was up 2.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts expect that Bank of Nova Scotia will post 6.04 earnings per share for the current year.

About Bank of Nova Scotia

Bank of Nova Scotia, commonly known as Scotiabank, is a Canadian multinational banking and financial services company founded in 1832 and headquartered in Toronto, Ontario. It is one of Canada's largest banks and provides a broad range of financial services to retail, commercial, corporate and institutional clients. The bank combines a domestic Canadian franchise with an extensive international presence to serve customers across multiple markets.

Scotiabank's core activities include personal and commercial banking, wealth management, corporate and investment banking, capital markets, and global transaction banking.

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