GAMMA Investing LLC Boosts Position in Bank of Nova Scotia (The) (NYSE:BNS)

GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Bank of Nova Scotia (The) (NYSE:BNS - Free Report) TSE: BNS by 4,643.2% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 9,012 shares of the bank's stock after purchasing an additional 8,822 shares during the quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC's holdings in Bank of Nova Scotia were worth $427,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Bank of Nova Scotia by 1.9% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 51,363,146 shares of the bank's stock worth $2,758,150,000 after purchasing an additional 969,488 shares during the period. Toronto Dominion Bank grew its holdings in shares of Bank of Nova Scotia by 1.7% during the 4th quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank now owns 25,425,639 shares of the bank's stock worth $1,363,619,000 after purchasing an additional 434,771 shares during the period. TD Asset Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Bank of Nova Scotia by 1.7% during the 4th quarter. TD Asset Management Inc. now owns 18,966,078 shares of the bank's stock worth $1,017,933,000 after purchasing an additional 308,837 shares during the period. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Bank of Nova Scotia during the 4th quarter worth about $690,746,000. Finally, Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. lifted its stake in Bank of Nova Scotia by 5.0% during the 4th quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. now owns 8,096,123 shares of the bank's stock worth $434,196,000 after acquiring an additional 385,333 shares in the last quarter. 49.13% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Bank of Nova Scotia Stock Performance

BNS traded down $0.02 during trading on Monday, hitting $54.15. 1,581,940 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,727,667. The firm has a market capitalization of $67.46 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.88, a PEG ratio of 1.36 and a beta of 1.13. Bank of Nova Scotia has a 1-year low of $43.68 and a 1-year high of $57.07. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $51.30 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $50.85. The company has a quick ratio of 1.03, a current ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62.

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 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate 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 firm had revenue of $6.59 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.98 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.58 EPS. The company's quarterly revenue was up 8.8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts predict 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 announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 29th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, July 2nd will be paid a $0.7996 dividend. This is an increase from Bank of Nova Scotia's previous quarterly dividend of $0.74. This represents a $3.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.91%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, July 2nd. Bank of Nova Scotia's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 86.51%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. Bank of America lowered Bank of Nova Scotia from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, March 31st. Wall Street Zen lowered Bank of Nova Scotia from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Saturday. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada decreased their target price on Bank of Nova Scotia from $83.00 to $81.00 and set a "sector perform" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Bank of Nova Scotia currently has a consensus 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.