The Bank of Nova Scotia (NYSE:BNS) Receives $72.00 Average Price Target from Analysts

Shares of The Bank of Nova Scotia (NYSE:BNS) (TSE:BNS) have earned an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the nine ratings firms that are presently covering the company, Marketbeat.com reports. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, five have given a buy recommendation and one has assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month target price among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $72.00.

A number of analysts have commented on BNS shares. TD Securities upgraded Bank of Nova Scotia from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, November 4th. Barclays upgraded Bank of Nova Scotia from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 21st. Canaccord Genuity Group upgraded Bank of Nova Scotia from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 19th. Cibc World Mkts upgraded Bank of Nova Scotia from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, September 20th. Finally, UBS Group upgraded Bank of Nova Scotia from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, November 18th.

Bank of Nova Scotia Stock Performance

Shares of BNS opened at $55.83 on Friday. 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 business has a 50-day simple moving average of $53.95 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $50.06. The stock has a market cap of $69.48 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.92, a PEG ratio of 1.25 and a beta of 1.07. Bank of Nova Scotia has a 52 week low of $43.67 and a 52 week high of $57.07.

Bank of Nova Scotia Cuts Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 29th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, January 7th will be issued a dividend of $0.7535 per share. This represents a $3.01 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.40%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, January 7th. Bank of Nova Scotia’s dividend payout ratio is presently 72.45%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Bank of Nova Scotia

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Mather Group LLC. grew its holdings in Bank of Nova Scotia by 1,388.9% during the 2nd quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 536 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 500 shares in the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Bank of Nova Scotia by 3,127.8% in the 2nd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 581 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 563 shares during the last quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets lifted its stake in shares of Bank of Nova Scotia by 1,588.2% in the 3rd quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 861 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $47,000 after purchasing an additional 810 shares during the last quarter. City State Bank bought a new stake in shares of Bank of Nova Scotia in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $57,000. Finally, Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB bought a new stake in shares of Bank of Nova Scotia in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $111,000. 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.