US Bancorp DE Lowers Stock Holdings in Bank of Nova Scotia (The) (NYSE:BNS)

Key Points

• US Bancorp DE has reduced its holdings in Bank of Nova Scotia by 13.6%, now owning 85,672 shares valued at approximately $4.06 million.
• The bank recently declared a quarterly dividend increase to $0.7996 per share, reflecting a yield of 5.8%.
• Wall Street Zen downgraded Bank of Nova Scotia from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating, contributing to an overall average rating of "Hold" among analysts.

US Bancorp DE cut its holdings in Bank of Nova Scotia (The) (NYSE:BNS - Free Report) TSE: BNS by 13.6% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 85,672 shares of the bank's stock after selling 13,535 shares during the quarter. US Bancorp DE's holdings in Bank of Nova Scotia were worth $4,063,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Compagnie Lombard Odier SCmA purchased a new position in shares of Bank of Nova Scotia during the 1st quarter worth about $52,000. Independence Bank of Kentucky increased its stake 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 worth $56,000 after purchasing an additional 326 shares during the period. North Capital Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Bank of Nova Scotia during the first quarter worth $81,000. Dunhill Financial LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Bank of Nova Scotia during the fourth quarter valued at $95,000. Finally, CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC grew its holdings in shares of Bank of Nova Scotia by 18.3% in the fourth quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC now owns 2,368 shares of the bank's stock worth $122,000 after purchasing an additional 367 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 49.13% of the company's stock.

Bank of Nova Scotia Stock Up 0.4%

NYSE BNS traded up $0.20 during trading on Thursday, reaching $55.78. 1,293,282 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,814,265. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $54.86 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $51.31. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62, a current ratio of 1.03 and a quick ratio of 1.03. The firm has a market cap of $69.35 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.03, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.40 and a beta of 1.14. Bank of Nova Scotia has a 12-month low of $44.09 and a 12-month high of $57.07.

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

Bank of Nova Scotia Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, July 29th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, July 2nd were issued a $0.7996 dividend. This is a boost from Bank of Nova Scotia's previous quarterly dividend of $0.74. This represents a $3.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, July 2nd. Bank of Nova Scotia's dividend payout ratio is 94.72%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

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