Bank of Nova Scotia (The) $BNS Stock Purchased by Ethic Inc.

Key Points

• Ethic Inc. increased its Bank of Nova Scotia position by 167.5% in the third quarter, ending with 71,451 shares valued at about $6.5 million. Institutional investors collectively held 49.13% of the bank’s stock.
• Analysts’ consensus rating was “Moderate Buy,” with an average price target of $105.50; BNS shares opened at $93.30.
• The bank beat quarterly earnings and revenue estimates, reporting EPS of $1.64 and revenue of $7.52 billion. It also authorized repurchases of up to 40 million shares and paid a quarterly dividend of C$1.14 per share.

Ethic Inc. increased its position in shares of Bank of Nova Scotia (The) (NYSE:BNS - Free Report) TSE: BNS by 167.5% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 71,451 shares of the bank's stock after acquiring an additional 44,739 shares during the quarter. Ethic Inc.'s holdings in Bank of Nova Scotia were worth $6,491,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of BNS. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA raised its position in shares of Bank of Nova Scotia by 4.0% during the 3rd quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA now owns 784,325 shares of the bank's stock valued at $71,491,000 after buying an additional 30,003 shares during the period. Parallel Advisors LLC grew its position in Bank of Nova Scotia by 12.7% in the third quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 3,901 shares of the bank's stock worth $354,000 after acquiring an additional 441 shares during the period. CenterBook Partners LP acquired a new stake in Bank of Nova Scotia during the third quarter worth $269,000. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC increased its stake in Bank of Nova Scotia by 5.6% during the third quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC now owns 16,836 shares of the bank's stock worth $1,529,000 after acquiring an additional 896 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Ascent Group LLC increased its stake in Bank of Nova Scotia by 6.6% during the third quarter. Ascent Group LLC now owns 4,414 shares of the bank's stock worth $401,000 after acquiring an additional 274 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 49.13% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

BNS has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods started coverage on Bank of Nova Scotia in a research note on Friday, August 21st. They issued an "outperform" rating on the stock. TD upgraded Bank of Nova Scotia to a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 26th. Weiss Ratings raised Bank of Nova Scotia from a "buy (a-)" rating to a "buy (a)" rating in a research report on Thursday, October 8th. National Bank Financial upgraded shares of Bank of Nova Scotia from a "sector perform" rating to an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 26th. Finally, TD Securities raised shares of Bank of Nova Scotia from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 25th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have assigned a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $105.50.

Bank of Nova Scotia Stock Up 1.8%

Bank of Nova Scotia stock opened at $93.30 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $113.43 billion, a PE ratio of 16.88, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.97 and a beta of 1.14. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.98, a quick ratio of 1.04 and a current ratio of 1.04. Bank of Nova Scotia has a fifty-two week low of $65.99 and a fifty-two week high of $96.85. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $92.41 and a 200 day moving average price of $82.94.

Bank of Nova Scotia (NYSE:BNS - Get Free Report) TSE: BNS last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 25th. The bank reported $1.64 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.53 by $0.11. Bank of Nova Scotia had a return on equity of 16.12% and a net margin of 13.91%. The company had revenue of $7.52 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $7.11 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.84 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was up 11.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts expect that Bank of Nova Scotia will post 6.19 earnings per share for the current year.

Bank of Nova Scotia declared that its Board of Directors has approved a share repurchase plan on Friday, October 2nd that permits the company to repurchase 40,000,000 shares. This buyback authorization permits the bank to purchase up to 3.3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are usually an indication that the company's board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Bank of Nova Scotia Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, October 28th. Investors of record on Tuesday, October 6th were issued a C$1.14 dividend. This represents a $4.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.9%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, October 6th. Bank of Nova Scotia's payout ratio is currently 57.87%.

Bank of Nova Scotia Company Profile

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