Bank of Nova Scotia (The) (NYSE:BNS) Shares Bought by Mackenzie Financial Corp

Key Points

• Mackenzie Financial Corp increased its stake in Bank of Nova Scotia by 2.5%, acquiring an additional 374,487 shares to hold a total of 15,158,112 shares.
• Bank of Nova Scotia plans to pay a quarterly dividend of $0.7996 per share, which represents a 5.65% yield and an increase from the previous dividend of $0.74.
• Recent analyst ratings for Bank of Nova Scotia show a consensus hold rating, with one sell rating, five hold ratings, and four buy ratings, alongside a price target of $81.00.

Mackenzie Financial Corp raised its position in shares of Bank of Nova Scotia (The) (NYSE:BNS - Free Report) TSE: BNS by 2.5% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 15,158,112 shares of the bank's stock after acquiring an additional 374,487 shares during the period. Bank of Nova Scotia makes up approximately 1.0% of Mackenzie Financial Corp's holdings, making the stock its 19th biggest holding. Mackenzie Financial Corp owned approximately 1.22% of Bank of Nova Scotia worth $718,670,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI bought a new stake in shares of Bank of Nova Scotia in the 4th quarter worth about $96,529,000. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Bank of Nova Scotia by 31.8% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 7,433,171 shares of the bank's stock valued at $406,103,000 after buying an additional 1,792,700 shares during the period. Value Partners Investments Inc. grew its position in Bank of Nova Scotia by 907.4% in the 1st quarter. Value Partners Investments Inc. now owns 1,124,324 shares of the bank's stock valued at $53,362,000 after acquiring an additional 1,012,715 shares during the last quarter. FIL Ltd lifted its holdings in Bank of Nova Scotia by 37.8% during the 4th quarter. FIL Ltd now owns 2,582,696 shares of the bank's stock valued at $138,689,000 after buying an additional 708,999 shares in the last quarter. Finally, APG Asset Management N.V. bought a new stake in Bank of Nova Scotia during the 4th quarter valued at $35,075,000. 49.13% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

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

Bank of Nova Scotia Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:BNS traded down $0.40 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $55.61. The company's stock had a trading volume of 799,721 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,032,214. The firm has a market capitalization of $69.13 billion, a PE ratio of 16.31, a P/E/G ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 1.12. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $54.52 and a 200 day moving average of $51.16. Bank of Nova Scotia has a twelve month low of $43.67 and a twelve month high of $57.07. 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 issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 27th. The bank reported $1.06 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.14 by ($0.08). The company had revenue of $6.59 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.98 billion. Bank of Nova Scotia had a net margin of 8.83% and a return on equity of 11.27%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 8.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.58 EPS. On average, equities analysts expect 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. Investors of record on Wednesday, July 2nd were paid a $0.7996 dividend. This represents a $3.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.75%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, July 2nd. This is a positive change from Bank of Nova Scotia's previous quarterly dividend of $0.74. Bank of Nova Scotia's payout ratio is currently 94.72%.

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.