Bank of Nova Scotia (NYSE:BNS) Upgraded by Bank of America to “Buy” Rating

Bank of America upgraded shares of Bank of Nova Scotia (NYSE:BNS) (TSE:BNS) from a neutral rating to a buy rating in a research report released on Tuesday, Marketbeat reports.

A number of other research firms have also weighed in on BNS. Cibc World Mkts raised Bank of Nova Scotia from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, September 20th. TD Securities upgraded Bank of Nova Scotia from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, November 4th. Finally, UBS Group upgraded Bank of Nova Scotia from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, November 18th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating, five have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Bank of Nova Scotia currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $69.00.

Bank of Nova Scotia Stock Up 0.4 %

BNS stock opened at $56.46 on Tuesday. Bank of Nova Scotia has a twelve month low of $41.80 and a twelve month high of $56.71. The company has a quick ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61. The firm has a market cap of $70.26 billion, a PE ratio of 13.51, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.67 and a beta of 1.05. The business has a 50 day moving average of $53.42 and a 200 day moving average of $49.41.

Bank of Nova Scotia (NYSE:BNS) (TSE:BNS) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 27th. The bank reported $1.63 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.62 by $0.01. Bank of Nova Scotia had a return on equity of 11.14% and a net margin of 9.84%. The company had revenue of $8.36 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.53 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.30 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts forecast that Bank of Nova Scotia will post 4.75 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Bank of Nova Scotia Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, October 29th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, October 2nd were paid a dividend of $0.768 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, October 2nd. This represents a $3.07 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.44%. Bank of Nova Scotia’s dividend payout ratio is 74.88%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Bank of Nova Scotia

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Sigma Planning Corp boosted its stake in shares of Bank of Nova Scotia by 1.9% in the 3rd quarter. Sigma Planning Corp now owns 11,089 shares of the bank’s stock worth $604,000 after buying an additional 210 shares during the last quarter. Signaturefd LLC boosted its stake in shares of Bank of Nova Scotia by 1.2% in the 3rd quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 18,470 shares of the bank’s stock worth $1,006,000 after buying an additional 216 shares during the last quarter. Addison Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Bank of Nova Scotia by 7.3% in the 3rd quarter. Addison Advisors LLC now owns 3,357 shares of the bank’s stock worth $183,000 after buying an additional 227 shares during the last quarter. Pacifica Partners Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Bank of Nova Scotia by 1.5% in the 2nd quarter. Pacifica Partners Inc. now owns 19,493 shares of the bank’s stock worth $889,000 after buying an additional 288 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Farther Finance Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Bank of Nova Scotia by 11.9% in the 3rd quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 2,713 shares of the bank’s stock worth $148,000 after purchasing an additional 288 shares during the period. 49.13% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.