Ieq Capital LLC Takes Position in Bank of Nova Scotia (The) $BNS

Ieq Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Bank of Nova Scotia (The) (NYSE:BNS) (TSE:BNS) in the second quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor purchased 24,306 shares of the bank’s stock, valued at approximately $2,111,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Bank of Nova Scotia during the fourth quarter valued at $1,368,456,000. FIL Ltd lifted its stake in Bank of Nova Scotia by 49.5% in the 4th quarter. FIL Ltd now owns 16,489,540 shares of the bank’s stock worth $1,216,157,000 after acquiring an additional 5,461,052 shares in the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its position in Bank of Nova Scotia by 3,120.1% during the 4th quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 3,556,295 shares of the bank’s stock worth $262,284,000 after acquiring an additional 3,445,856 shares during the period. Deutsche Bank AG purchased a new position in Bank of Nova Scotia during the 2nd quarter valued at about $232,012,000. Finally, Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI purchased a new position in Bank of Nova Scotia during the 3rd quarter valued at about $138,394,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 49.13% of the company’s stock.

Bank of Nova Scotia Price Performance

NYSE BNS opened at $93.16 on Wednesday. Bank of Nova Scotia has a fifty-two week low of $58.77 and a fifty-two week high of $93.44. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $87.77 and its two-hundred day moving average is $79.82. The firm has a market cap of $113.55 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.78, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.07 and a beta of 1.11. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a current ratio of 1.04 and a quick ratio of 1.04.

Bank of Nova Scotia (NYSE:BNS) (TSE:BNS) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 27th. The bank reported $1.47 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.42 by $0.05. Bank of Nova Scotia had a return on equity of 13.16% and a net margin of 13.38%.The business had revenue of $7.24 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.13 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.52 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts anticipate that Bank of Nova Scotia will post 6.03 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Bank of Nova Scotia Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 28th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, October 6th will be issued a dividend of $1.14 per share. This represents a $4.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.9%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, October 6th. Bank of Nova Scotia’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 61.26%.

Trending Headlines about Bank of Nova Scotia

Here are the key news stories impacting Bank of Nova Scotia this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Quarterly earnings exceeded expectations. BNS reported quarterly EPS of $1.64, ahead of the $1.53 consensus estimate, while revenue increased 11.1% year over year. On an adjusted basis, EPS was reported at $2.28 versus expectations of approximately $2.10. BNS earnings report
• Positive Sentiment: Strength was broad-based across the business. Record results in global wealth management and global banking and markets, helped by elevated market volatility and stronger capital-markets activity, drove profit above analyst estimates. Reported quarterly profit rose to C$2.95 billion from C$2.53 billion a year earlier. Scotiabank earnings lifted by wealth management
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst sentiment improved. TD Securities upgraded Bank of Nova Scotia from “hold” to “buy,” adding support to the bullish reaction following the earnings release.
• Positive Sentiment: Trade-war concerns have not yet materially damaged results. Reports indicated that new U.S. tariffs affecting some bank customers have not significantly harmed BNS or other Canadian lenders. Management may also find opportunities as businesses adjust to changing trade conditions. Canadian banks beat earnings targets as trade war escalates
• Positive Sentiment: Dividend income remains attractive. BNS declared a quarterly dividend of $1.14 per share, representing an annualized yield of approximately 4.9% based on the reported share price. The dividend is payable October 28 to shareholders of record October 6.
• Neutral Sentiment: BNS also launched a no-fee Visa business credit card offering 1% cash back, a potentially useful customer-acquisition initiative but unlikely to be a major near-term stock catalyst. Scotiabank launches no-fee Visa card

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on BNS shares. TD Securities raised shares of Bank of Nova Scotia from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods began coverage on shares of Bank of Nova Scotia in a research note on Friday, August 21st. They issued an “outperform” rating on the stock. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Bank of Nova Scotia from a “buy (a-)” rating to a “buy (b+)” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 18th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their target price on shares of Bank of Nova Scotia from $98.00 to $117.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 28th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Bank of Nova Scotia has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $117.00.

Bank of Nova Scotia Profile

Bank of Nova Scotia, commonly known as Scotiabank, is a Canadian multinational banking and financial services company founded in 1832 and headquartered in Toronto, Ontario. It is one of Canada’s largest banks and provides a broad range of financial services to retail, commercial, corporate and institutional clients. The bank combines a domestic Canadian franchise with an extensive international presence to serve customers across multiple markets.

Scotiabank’s core activities include personal and commercial banking, wealth management, corporate and investment banking, capital markets, and global transaction banking.