Intact Investment Management Inc. Has $38.45 Million Position in The Bank of Nova Scotia (NYSE:BNS)

Intact Investment Management Inc. raised its position in shares of The Bank of Nova Scotia (NYSE:BNS - Free Report) TSE: BNS by 79.4% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 789,954 shares of the bank's stock after buying an additional 349,593 shares during the quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia comprises 1.6% of Intact Investment Management Inc.'s portfolio, making the stock its 21st largest position. Intact Investment Management Inc. owned approximately 0.07% of Bank of Nova Scotia worth $38,454,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of BNS. Pacifica Partners Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Bank of Nova Scotia by 1.5% during the fourth quarter. Pacifica Partners Inc. now owns 19,185 shares of the bank's stock valued at $851,000 after purchasing an additional 285 shares during the last quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC grew its holdings in shares of Bank of Nova Scotia by 13.3% during the third quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC now owns 2,770 shares of the bank's stock valued at $126,000 after purchasing an additional 326 shares during the last quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp grew its holdings in shares of Bank of Nova Scotia by 71.6% during the fourth quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 858 shares of the bank's stock valued at $42,000 after purchasing an additional 358 shares during the last quarter. Exencial Wealth Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Bank of Nova Scotia by 2.0% during the third quarter. Exencial Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 21,042 shares of the bank's stock valued at $959,000 after purchasing an additional 416 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp grew its holdings in shares of Bank of Nova Scotia by 12.1% during the third quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp now owns 4,628 shares of the bank's stock valued at $207,000 after purchasing an additional 500 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 49.13% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently commented on the company. Barclays assumed coverage on Bank of Nova Scotia in a report on Wednesday, March 20th. They set an "underweight" rating and a $70.00 target price for the company. Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on Bank of Nova Scotia in a report on Thursday, February 22nd. They issued a "hold" rating for the company. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and four have issued a hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Bank of Nova Scotia currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $68.00.

Bank of Nova Scotia Stock Performance

BNS stock traded up $0.33 on Friday, reaching $46.56. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,145,238 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,092,914. The Bank of Nova Scotia has a 52 week low of $39.79 and a 52 week high of $51.98. The company has a market capitalization of $56.91 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.30, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.53 and a beta of 1.04. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $48.94 and a two-hundred day moving average of $46.47. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56, a current ratio of 1.03 and a quick ratio of 1.03.

Bank of Nova Scotia (NYSE:BNS - Get Free Report) TSE: BNS last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 27th. The bank reported $1.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.19 by $0.06. The business had revenue of $14.13 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.01 billion. Bank of Nova Scotia had a return on equity of 11.51% and a net margin of 10.71%. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.37 EPS. As a group, analysts predict that The Bank of Nova Scotia will post 4.9 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Bank of Nova Scotia Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 26th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 2nd were given a $0.7843 dividend. This represents a $3.14 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.74%. This is an increase from Bank of Nova Scotia's previous quarterly dividend of $0.78. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, April 1st. Bank of Nova Scotia's dividend payout ratio is 34.96%.

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.