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

Canaccord Genuity Group upgraded shares of Bank of Nova Scotia (NYSE:BNS) (TSE:BNS) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research note released on Tuesday.

Other analysts have also recently issued reports about the company. UBS Group raised Bank of Nova Scotia from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, November 18th. Bank of America raised Bank of Nova Scotia from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday. Cibc World Mkts raised Bank of Nova Scotia from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, September 20th. TD Securities raised Bank of Nova Scotia from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, November 4th. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group raised Bank of Nova Scotia from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating, five have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Bank of Nova Scotia has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $69.00.

Bank of Nova Scotia Stock Performance

NYSE BNS opened at $56.46 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $70.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.51, a PEG ratio of 1.67 and a beta of 1.05. The business’s 50 day moving average is $53.42 and its two-hundred day moving average is $49.41. Bank of Nova Scotia has a 12-month low of $41.80 and a 12-month high of $56.71. The company has a current ratio of 1.02, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61.

Bank of Nova Scotia (NYSE:BNS) (TSE:BNS) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 27th. The bank reported $1.63 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.62 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $8.36 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $8.53 billion. Bank of Nova Scotia had a return on equity of 11.14% and a net margin of 9.84%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 3.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.30 EPS. Research analysts expect that Bank of Nova Scotia will post 4.75 EPS for the current year.

Bank of Nova Scotia Cuts Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, October 29th. Investors of record on Wednesday, October 2nd were issued a dividend of $0.768 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend 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 presently 74.88%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Bank of Nova Scotia

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of BNS. Mather Group LLC. raised its holdings in Bank of Nova Scotia by 1,388.9% during the second quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 536 shares of the bank’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 500 shares during the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. increased its position in Bank of Nova Scotia by 3,127.8% during the second quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 581 shares of the bank’s stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 563 shares in the last quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets increased 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 in the last quarter. City State Bank purchased a new position in Bank of Nova Scotia during the third quarter worth $57,000. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its position in Bank of Nova Scotia by 102.1% during the first quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,605 shares of the bank’s stock worth $83,000 after buying an additional 811 shares in the last quarter. 49.13% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.