The Bank of Nova Scotia (NYSE:BNS) Position Decreased by Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC

Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC reduced its holdings in The Bank of Nova Scotia (NYSE:BNS - Free Report) TSE: BNS by 2.2% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 3,867,989 shares of the bank's stock after selling 88,185 shares during the quarter. Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC owned approximately 0.31% of Bank of Nova Scotia worth $207,788,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of BNS. Norges Bank bought a new position in Bank of Nova Scotia in the fourth quarter worth about $690,746,000. Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI bought a new stake in shares of Bank of Nova Scotia in the 4th quarter worth approximately $96,529,000. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in Bank of Nova Scotia by 31.8% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 7,433,171 shares of the bank's stock worth $406,103,000 after buying an additional 1,792,700 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in Bank of Nova Scotia by 1.9% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 51,363,146 shares of the bank's stock worth $2,758,150,000 after buying an additional 969,488 shares during the period. Finally, FIL Ltd increased its position in Bank of Nova Scotia by 37.8% in the fourth quarter. FIL Ltd now owns 2,582,696 shares of the bank's stock worth $138,689,000 after buying an additional 708,999 shares during the period. 49.13% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada dropped their price objective on shares of Bank of Nova Scotia from $83.00 to $81.00 and set a "sector perform" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. Bank of America lowered shares of Bank of Nova Scotia from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, March 31st. Cibc World Mkts cut Bank of Nova Scotia from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. Finally, CIBC reissued a "neutral" rating on shares of Bank of Nova Scotia in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $81.00.

Bank of Nova Scotia Price Performance

Shares of NYSE BNS traded up $0.52 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $52.71. 2,065,577 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,710,026. The firm has a market cap of $65.65 billion, a PE ratio of 12.20, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.16 and a beta of 1.11. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59, a current ratio of 1.03 and a quick ratio of 1.03. The Bank of Nova Scotia has a fifty-two week low of $43.68 and a fifty-two week high of $57.07. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $48.73 and a 200-day simple moving average of $51.08.

Bank of Nova Scotia Cuts Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 28th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, April 1st were paid a $0.7415 dividend. This represents a $2.97 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.63%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, April 1st. Bank of Nova Scotia's dividend payout ratio is presently 83.05%.

Bank of Nova Scotia 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.