The Bank of Nova Scotia (NYSE:BNS) is Louisbourg Investments Inc.'s 6th Largest Position

Louisbourg Investments Inc. decreased its holdings in The Bank of Nova Scotia (NYSE:BNS - Free Report) TSE: BNS by 14.2% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 181,753 shares of the bank's stock after selling 30,056 shares during the quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia makes up approximately 2.1% of Louisbourg Investments Inc.'s holdings, making the stock its 6th largest holding. Louisbourg Investments Inc.'s holdings in Bank of Nova Scotia were worth $8,626,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Murphy & Mullick Capital Management Corp purchased a new stake in Bank of Nova Scotia in the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich purchased a new stake in Bank of Nova Scotia in the 4th quarter valued at about $31,000. Allworth Financial LP grew its holdings in Bank of Nova Scotia by 121.1% in the 4th quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 639 shares of the bank's stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 350 shares during the period. Compagnie Lombard Odier SCmA purchased a new stake in Bank of Nova Scotia in the 1st quarter valued at about $52,000. Finally, Independence Bank of Kentucky grew its holdings in 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. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 49.13% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Bank of America cut Bank of Nova Scotia from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, March 31st. CIBC reiterated a "neutral" rating on shares of Bank of Nova Scotia in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their target price on Bank of Nova Scotia from $83.00 to $81.00 and set a "sector perform" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Bank of Nova Scotia from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, May 30th. Finally, Cibc World Mkts cut Bank of Nova Scotia from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $81.00.

Bank of Nova Scotia Stock Performance

Bank of Nova Scotia stock opened at $54.83 on Tuesday. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $50.65 and its 200 day moving average price is $50.89. The firm has a market capitalization of $68.30 billion, a PE ratio of 12.69, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.16 and a beta of 1.13. 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 Bank of Nova Scotia has a one year low of $43.68 and a one year high of $57.07.

Bank of Nova Scotia (NYSE:BNS - Get Free Report) TSE: BNS last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 27th. The bank reported $1.06 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.14 by ($0.08). The company had revenue of $6.59 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates 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 revenue was up 8.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.58 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that The Bank of Nova Scotia will post 4.91 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Bank of Nova Scotia Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 29th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, July 2nd will be given a $0.7996 dividend. This represents a $3.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.83%. This is a positive change from Bank of Nova Scotia's previous quarterly dividend of $0.74. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, July 2nd. Bank of Nova Scotia's dividend payout ratio is presently 93.84%.

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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.