127,563 Bank of Nova Scotia (The) $BNS Shares Sold by Artemis Investment Management LLP

Artemis Investment Management LLP decreased its holdings in Bank of Nova Scotia (The) (NYSE:BNS) (TSE:BNS) by 6.2% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 1,941,676 shares of the bank’s stock after selling 127,563 shares during the quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia makes up about 1.4% of Artemis Investment Management LLP’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 13th largest position. Artemis Investment Management LLP owned approximately 0.16% of Bank of Nova Scotia worth $176,572,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in BNS. PensionDanmark Pensionsforsikringsaktieselskab grew its holdings in Bank of Nova Scotia by 9.3% during the 2nd quarter. PensionDanmark Pensionsforsikringsaktieselskab now owns 178,226 shares of the bank’s stock worth $15,460,000 after acquiring an additional 15,100 shares during the last quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC acquired a new position in shares of Bank of Nova Scotia during the second quarter valued at about $6,974,000. Wellington Management Group LLP bought a new stake in Bank of Nova Scotia during the second quarter worth $354,379,000. Bank of America Corp DE bought a new position in shares of Bank of Nova Scotia during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $224,782,000. Finally, Cidel Asset Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Bank of Nova Scotia by 119.1% in the 2nd quarter. Cidel Asset Management Inc. now owns 353,888 shares of the bank’s stock worth $30,748,000 after buying an additional 192,388 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 49.13% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on BNS shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods initiated coverage on Bank of Nova Scotia in a report on Friday, August 21st. They issued an “outperform” rating for the company. TD Securities raised shares of Bank of Nova Scotia from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 25th. Weiss Ratings upgraded 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, National Bank Financial raised Bank of Nova Scotia from a “sector perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 26th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have issued a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Bank of Nova Scotia currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $117.00.

Bank of Nova Scotia Price Performance

Shares of BNS stock traded up $0.81 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $88.04. The stock had a trading volume of 494,014 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,354,157. The stock has a market capitalization of $107.13 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.92, a PEG ratio of 1.01 and a beta of 1.14. Bank of Nova Scotia has a one year low of $62.98 and a one year high of $95.74. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.98, a current ratio of 1.04 and a quick ratio of 1.04. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $91.20 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $83.85.

Bank of Nova Scotia (NYSE:BNS) (TSE:BNS) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, August 25th. The bank reported $1.64 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.53 by $0.11. Bank of Nova Scotia had a net margin of 13.91% and a return on equity of 16.12%. The firm had revenue of $7.52 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.11 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.84 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 11.1% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts forecast that Bank of Nova Scotia will post 6.19 EPS for the current 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 C$1.14 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, October 6th. This represents a $4.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.2%. Bank of Nova Scotia’s payout ratio is presently 59.49%.

Bank of Nova Scotia Company Profile

Bank of Nova Scotia, commonly known as Scotiabank, is a Canadian financial services company headquartered in Toronto, Ontario. Founded in 1832, it is one of Canada’s largest banks and provides a broad range of banking and financial services to individuals, businesses, institutions and governments.

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

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