The Bank of Nova Scotia (NYSE:BNS) Receives Average Recommendation of "Hold" from Analysts

Shares of The Bank of Nova Scotia (NYSE:BNS - Get Free Report) TSE: BNS have earned an average recommendation of "Hold" from the nine brokerages that are currently covering the stock, MarketBeat.com reports. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and four have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 1-year price objective among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $81.00.

Several analysts have recently commented on BNS shares. 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 for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. Bank of America downgraded shares of Bank of Nova Scotia from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, March 31st. Cibc World Mkts cut shares of Bank of Nova Scotia from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. Finally, CIBC restated a "neutral" rating on shares of Bank of Nova Scotia in a report on Tuesday, February 18th.

Bank of Nova Scotia Stock Performance

BNS traded up $0.13 on Friday, hitting $47.24. 168,258 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,043,342. Bank of Nova Scotia has a 12-month low of $43.67 and a 12-month high of $57.07. The company has a quick ratio of 1.03, a current ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59. The company has a 50 day moving average of $48.42 and a 200-day moving average of $51.64. The stock has a market capitalization of $58.84 billion, a PE ratio of 10.93, a PEG ratio of 1.16 and a beta of 1.02.

Bank of Nova Scotia Cuts Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 28th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 1st will be paid a $0.7415 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 1st. This represents a $2.97 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.28%. Bank of Nova Scotia's payout ratio is currently 83.05%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in BNS. BNP Paribas Financial Markets lifted its position in Bank of Nova Scotia by 1,588.2% during the third quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 861 shares of the bank's stock worth $47,000 after buying an additional 810 shares during the period. Verition Fund Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Bank of Nova Scotia in the third quarter worth approximately $258,000. Stifel Financial Corp grew its holdings in Bank of Nova Scotia by 14.2% in the third quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 64,054 shares of the bank's stock valued at $3,490,000 after purchasing an additional 7,970 shares during the period. State Street Corp increased its position in Bank of Nova Scotia by 1.4% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 124,030 shares of the bank's stock worth $6,758,000 after purchasing an additional 1,690 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Bank of Nova Scotia by 20.2% in the 3rd quarter. Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC now owns 5,821 shares of the bank's stock valued at $317,000 after purchasing an additional 979 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 49.13% of the company's stock.

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.