Guardian Partners Inc. Buys 21,958 Shares of Bank of Nova Scotia (The) $BNS

Key Points

• Guardian Partners Inc. increased its stake in the Bank of Nova Scotia by 3.6%, now holding approximately 631,738 shares, making it their 6th largest investment at a value of $29.5 million.
• Multiple institutional investors have adjusted their positions, with notable increases including AQR Capital Management raising its stake by 111.2% and Murchinson Ltd. acquiring new shares worth around $203.95 million.
• The Bank of Nova Scotia reported an EPS of $1.37 for the last quarter, exceeding analysts' expectations, although its revenue was down 13.4% compared to the prior year.

Guardian Partners Inc. raised its stake in Bank of Nova Scotia (The) (NYSE:BNS - Free Report) TSE: BNS by 3.6% during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 631,738 shares of the bank's stock after buying an additional 21,958 shares during the period. Bank of Nova Scotia accounts for 3.0% of Guardian Partners Inc.'s holdings, making the stock its 6th largest holding. Guardian Partners Inc. owned approximately 0.05% of Bank of Nova Scotia worth $29,532,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in BNS. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV acquired a new stake in Bank of Nova Scotia in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $319,000. Captrust Financial Advisors boosted its position in Bank of Nova Scotia by 7.4% in the fourth quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 23,986 shares of the bank's stock valued at $1,289,000 after buying an additional 1,657 shares in the last quarter. Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC acquired a new stake in Bank of Nova Scotia in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,592,000. Deutsche Bank AG lifted its holdings in shares of Bank of Nova Scotia by 8.6% during the fourth quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 1,718,907 shares of the bank's stock worth $92,340,000 after purchasing an additional 136,275 shares during the period. Finally, Focus Partners Wealth bought a new stake in shares of Bank of Nova Scotia in the fourth quarter worth $348,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 49.13% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages recently weighed in on BNS. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their price objective on shares of Bank of Nova Scotia from $80.00 to $86.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 27th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Bank of Nova Scotia from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, August 30th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Bank of Nova Scotia presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $86.00.

Bank of Nova Scotia Trading Down 1.4%

BNS stock traded down $0.89 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $63.39. The stock had a trading volume of 1,335,582 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,940,702. The firm has a market cap of $78.65 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.04, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.48 and a beta of 1.16. The company has a current ratio of 1.03, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66. Bank of Nova Scotia has a 1-year low of $44.09 and a 1-year high of $64.38. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $57.89 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $52.97.

Bank of Nova Scotia (NYSE:BNS - Get Free Report) TSE: BNS last released its earnings results on Tuesday, August 26th. The bank reported $1.37 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.28 by $0.09. The business had revenue of $6.85 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.29 billion. Bank of Nova Scotia had a net margin of 9.74% and a return on equity of 11.61%. Bank of Nova Scotia's revenue for the quarter was up 13.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.63 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Bank of Nova Scotia will post 4.91 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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.