Bank of Nova Scotia (The) (NYSE:BNS) Shares Bought by Maryland State Retirement & Pension System

Key Points

• Maryland State Retirement & Pension System increased its stake in Bank of Nova Scotia by 33.3%, owning 182,677 shares valued at approximately $8.66 million, indicating growing institutional investment interest.
• Bank of Nova Scotia reported Q2 earnings per share of $1.06, missing expectations by $0.08, with revenue of $6.59 billion, below analyst estimates of $8.98 billion.
• The bank has recently increased its quarterly dividend to $0.7996 per share, reflecting a dividend yield of 5.8% and a payout ratio of approximately 94.72%.

Maryland State Retirement & Pension System grew its stake in Bank of Nova Scotia (The) (NYSE:BNS - Free Report) TSE: BNS by 33.3% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 182,677 shares of the bank's stock after buying an additional 45,599 shares during the period. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System's holdings in Bank of Nova Scotia were worth $8,659,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC raised its position in Bank of Nova Scotia by 4.8% in the 4th quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 5,399 shares of the bank's stock valued at $290,000 after purchasing an additional 248 shares during the last quarter. Sara Bay Financial raised its position in Bank of Nova Scotia by 6.2% in the 1st quarter. Sara Bay Financial now owns 5,021 shares of the bank's stock valued at $240,000 after purchasing an additional 294 shares during the last quarter. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. raised its position in Bank of Nova Scotia by 0.5% in the 1st quarter. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. now owns 58,073 shares of the bank's stock valued at $2,754,000 after purchasing an additional 298 shares during the last quarter. Orca Wealth Management LLC raised its position in Bank of Nova Scotia by 1.9% in the 1st quarter. Orca Wealth Management LLC now owns 16,839 shares of the bank's stock valued at $799,000 after purchasing an additional 307 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Independence Bank of Kentucky raised its position in 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 valued at $56,000 after purchasing an additional 326 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 49.13% of the company's stock.

Bank of Nova Scotia Stock Down 0.1%

Shares of Bank of Nova Scotia stock opened at $55.59 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $69.11 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.30, a PEG ratio of 1.40 and a beta of 1.14. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a current ratio of 1.03. Bank of Nova Scotia has a one year low of $44.09 and a one year high of $57.07. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $54.86 and a two-hundred day moving average of $51.31.

Bank of Nova Scotia (NYSE:BNS - Get Free Report) TSE: BNS last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 27th. The bank reported $1.06 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates 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 company had revenue of $6.59 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.98 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.58 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 8.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts forecast that Bank of Nova Scotia will post 4.91 earnings per share for the current year.

Bank of Nova Scotia Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, July 29th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, July 2nd were paid a dividend of $0.7996 per share. This is a boost from Bank of Nova Scotia's previous quarterly dividend of $0.74. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, July 2nd. This represents a $3.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.8%. Bank of Nova Scotia's dividend payout ratio is currently 94.72%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Bank of Nova Scotia from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Saturday, June 21st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Bank of Nova Scotia has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $81.00.

About Bank of Nova Scotia

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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