Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio Lowers Stock Position in The Bank of Nova Scotia (NYSE:BNS)

Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio trimmed its stake in The Bank of Nova Scotia (NYSE:BNS - Free Report) TSE: BNS by 31.2% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 130,751 shares of the bank's stock after selling 59,317 shares during the period. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio's holdings in Bank of Nova Scotia were worth $7,019,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in BNS. Private Advisor Group LLC raised its position in Bank of Nova Scotia by 3.5% in the fourth quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 6,248 shares of the bank's stock valued at $336,000 after purchasing an additional 211 shares during the period. Moran Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Bank of Nova Scotia by 6.5% in the 4th quarter. Moran Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,925 shares of the bank's stock valued at $211,000 after buying an additional 240 shares during the period. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC raised its holdings in shares of Bank of Nova Scotia by 4.8% in the 4th quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 5,399 shares of the bank's stock valued at $290,000 after buying an additional 248 shares during the period. Lindbrook Capital LLC raised its holdings in shares of Bank of Nova Scotia by 10.2% in the 4th quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 2,860 shares of the bank's stock valued at $154,000 after buying an additional 264 shares during the period. Finally, Addison Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Bank of Nova Scotia by 9.8% in the 4th quarter. Addison Advisors LLC now owns 3,685 shares of the bank's stock valued at $198,000 after buying an additional 328 shares during the period. 49.13% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Bank of Nova Scotia Stock Up 0.6%

NYSE:BNS traded up $0.33 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $53.59. The company's stock had a trading volume of 2,438,449 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,711,540. The stock has a market capitalization of $66.75 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.41, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.16 and a beta of 1.11. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $49.00 and a 200-day moving average of $51.10. The company has a current ratio of 1.03, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59. 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 released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 27th. The bank reported $1.06 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.14 by ($0.08). Bank of Nova Scotia had a net margin of 10.20% and a return on equity of 11.56%. The business had revenue of $6.59 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $8.98 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.58 EPS. The company's revenue was up 8.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts forecast that The 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 declared 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 a positive change from Bank of Nova Scotia's previous quarterly dividend of $0.74. This represents a $3.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.97%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, July 2nd. Bank of Nova Scotia's dividend payout ratio is currently 89.44%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have issued reports on BNS shares. Cibc World Mkts lowered shares of Bank of Nova Scotia from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. CIBC reaffirmed a "neutral" rating on shares of Bank of Nova Scotia in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. Royal Bank of Canada cut their price objective on Bank of Nova Scotia from $83.00 to $81.00 and set a "sector perform" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. Finally, Bank of America lowered Bank of Nova Scotia from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, March 31st. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Bank of Nova Scotia presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $81.00.

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.