PCJ Investment Counsel Ltd. Cuts Stock Position in Bank of Nova Scotia (The) (NYSE:BNS)

Key Points

• PCJ Investment Counsel Ltd. significantly reduced its stake in Bank of Nova Scotia by 46.2%, now holding 34,510 shares valued at approximately $1.64 million.
• Bank of Nova Scotia has received a recent downgrade from Wall Street Zen, lowering its rating from "hold" to "sell," with current ratings showing a mix of sell, hold, and buy recommendations.
• The bank announced an increase in its quarterly dividend to $0.7996 per share, providing investors with a 5.7% annualized yield.

PCJ Investment Counsel Ltd. lessened its position in Bank of Nova Scotia (The) (NYSE:BNS - Free Report) TSE: BNS by 46.2% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 34,510 shares of the bank's stock after selling 29,590 shares during the quarter. PCJ Investment Counsel Ltd.'s holdings in Bank of Nova Scotia were worth $1,637,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Compagnie Lombard Odier SCmA purchased a new stake in shares of Bank of Nova Scotia in the 1st quarter valued at $52,000. Independence Bank of Kentucky raised its holdings in shares of Bank of Nova Scotia by 38.4% in the 1st quarter. Independence Bank of Kentucky now owns 1,175 shares of the bank's stock valued at $56,000 after buying an additional 326 shares during the period. North Capital Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Bank of Nova Scotia in the 1st quarter valued at $81,000. Dunhill Financial LLC acquired a new position in Bank of Nova Scotia during the 4th quarter worth $95,000. Finally, Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. grew its stake in Bank of Nova Scotia by 11.2% during the 1st quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 3,343 shares of the bank's stock worth $159,000 after purchasing an additional 336 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 49.13% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, Wall Street Zen cut Bank of Nova Scotia from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Saturday, June 21st. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $81.00.

Bank of Nova Scotia Trading Up 0.4%

NYSE:BNS opened at $55.78 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $69.35 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.36, a P/E/G ratio of 1.40 and a beta of 1.14. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a current ratio of 1.03. Bank of Nova Scotia has a 1 year low of $44.09 and a 1 year high of $57.07. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $54.92 and a 200-day simple moving average of $51.34.

Bank of Nova Scotia (NYSE:BNS - Get Free Report) TSE: BNS last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, May 27th. The bank reported $1.06 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.14 by ($0.08). The firm 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 firm's revenue for the quarter was up 8.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.58 earnings per share. As a group, analysts anticipate that Bank of Nova Scotia will post 4.91 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Bank of Nova Scotia Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, July 29th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, July 2nd were paid a dividend of $0.7996 per share. This is a positive change from Bank of Nova Scotia's previous quarterly dividend of $0.74. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, July 2nd. This represents a $3.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.7%. Bank of Nova Scotia's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 94.72%.

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.

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