Mackenzie Financial Corp Cuts Holdings in The Bank of Nova Scotia (NYSE:BNS)

Mackenzie Financial Corp lessened its stake in shares of The Bank of Nova Scotia (NYSE:BNS - Free Report) TSE: BNS by 3.1% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 14,783,625 shares of the bank's stock after selling 473,310 shares during the quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia comprises 1.0% of Mackenzie Financial Corp's portfolio, making the stock its 17th largest holding. Mackenzie Financial Corp owned approximately 1.19% of Bank of Nova Scotia worth $793,015,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Barclays PLC grew its holdings in shares of Bank of Nova Scotia by 27.5% during the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 214,957 shares of the bank's stock worth $11,712,000 after purchasing an additional 46,421 shares in the last quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC grew its holdings in shares of Bank of Nova Scotia by 5.8% during the fourth quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC now owns 4,905 shares of the bank's stock worth $264,000 after purchasing an additional 271 shares in the last quarter. Atomi Financial Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Bank of Nova Scotia by 28.3% during the fourth quarter. Atomi Financial Group Inc. now owns 11,065 shares of the bank's stock worth $594,000 after purchasing an additional 2,439 shares in the last quarter. Cornerstone Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Bank of Nova Scotia by 2.0% during the fourth quarter. Cornerstone Wealth Management LLC now owns 20,020 shares of the bank's stock worth $1,075,000 after purchasing an additional 401 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Bank of Nova Scotia by 98.6% during the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 3,134 shares of the bank's stock worth $171,000 after purchasing an additional 1,556 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 49.13% of the company's stock.

Bank of Nova Scotia Stock Up 1.7%

Shares of Bank of Nova Scotia stock traded up $0.88 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $53.07. The company had a trading volume of 1,044,219 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,704,032. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a current ratio of 1.03. The stock has a market capitalization of $66.10 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.28, a P/E/G ratio of 1.16 and a beta of 1.11. The company has a 50 day moving average of $48.91 and a 200 day moving average of $51.10. The Bank of Nova Scotia has a 52-week low of $43.68 and a 52-week high of $57.07.

Bank of Nova Scotia (NYSE:BNS - Get Free Report) TSE: BNS last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 27th. The bank reported $1.06 earnings per share 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 analysts' expectations of $8.98 billion. Bank of Nova Scotia had a return on equity of 11.56% and a net margin of 10.20%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 8.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.58 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that The Bank of Nova Scotia will post 4.91 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Bank of Nova Scotia Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 29th. Investors of record on Wednesday, July 2nd will be paid a $0.7996 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, July 2nd. This represents a $3.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.03%. This is an increase from Bank of Nova Scotia's previous quarterly dividend of $0.74. Bank of Nova Scotia's dividend payout ratio is presently 83.05%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently weighed in on BNS shares. Cibc World Mkts downgraded Bank of Nova Scotia from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. CIBC restated a "neutral" rating on shares of Bank of Nova Scotia in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their price target on 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. Finally, Bank of America downgraded Bank of Nova Scotia from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, March 31st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock 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.