Squarepoint Ops LLC Acquires Shares of 80,305 Bank of Nova Scotia (The) $BNS

Squarepoint Ops LLC bought a new stake in shares of Bank of Nova Scotia (The) (NYSE:BNS) (TSE:BNS) in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm bought 80,305 shares of the bank’s stock, valued at approximately $6,974,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of BNS. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Bank of Nova Scotia in the fourth quarter valued at about $1,368,456,000. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board purchased a new stake in Bank of Nova Scotia during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $1,016,738,000. Legal & General Group Plc purchased a new stake in Bank of Nova Scotia during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $709,837,000. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. purchased a new stake in Bank of Nova Scotia during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $567,278,000. Finally, FIL Ltd raised its position in shares of Bank of Nova Scotia by 49.5% in the 4th quarter. FIL Ltd now owns 16,489,540 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $1,216,157,000 after purchasing an additional 5,461,052 shares in the last quarter. 49.13% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently commented on the company. National Bank Financial upgraded Bank of Nova Scotia from a “sector perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 26th. TD Securities raised shares of Bank of Nova Scotia from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 25th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods initiated coverage on shares of Bank of Nova Scotia in a research note on Friday, August 21st. They set an “outperform” rating on the stock. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Bank of Nova Scotia from a “buy (b+)” rating to a “buy (a-)” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 1st. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their price target on Bank of Nova Scotia from $98.00 to $117.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 28th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have given a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $117.00.

Bank of Nova Scotia Trading Up 0.8%

Bank of Nova Scotia stock opened at $92.81 on Friday. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $89.31 and its 200-day moving average is $81.21. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.98, a quick ratio of 1.04 and a current ratio of 1.04. Bank of Nova Scotia has a 1 year low of $62.98 and a 1 year high of $95.34. The company has a market cap of $113.11 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.79, a PEG ratio of 1.03 and a beta of 1.12.

Bank of Nova Scotia (NYSE:BNS) (TSE:BNS) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 25th. The bank reported $1.64 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.53 by $0.11. The business had revenue of $7.52 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.11 billion. Bank of Nova Scotia had a net margin of 13.91% and a return on equity of 16.12%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.84 EPS. On average, equities analysts expect that Bank of Nova Scotia will post 6.19 earnings per share for the current year.

Bank of Nova Scotia Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 28th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, October 6th will be paid a $1.14 dividend. This represents a $4.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.9%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, October 6th. Bank of Nova Scotia’s payout ratio is presently 58.05%.

Bank of Nova Scotia Company Profile

The Bank of Nova Scotia, operating as Scotiabank, is a Canadian financial institution headquartered in Toronto, Ontario. Founded in Halifax in 1832, the bank provides banking and financial services to individuals, businesses, institutions and governments.

Scotiabank’s principal activities include Canadian personal and commercial banking, international banking, global wealth management, and global banking and markets. Its products and services include deposit accounts, mortgages, consumer and commercial loans, credit cards, investment products, financial planning, asset management, foreign exchange, capital markets services and corporate banking.

The bank serves customers across Canada and maintains international operations in Mexico, Peru, Chile, the Caribbean, Central America and other selected markets.