Virtu Financial LLC Takes $397,000 Position in The Bank of Nova Scotia (NYSE:BNS)

Virtu Financial LLC bought a new stake in shares of The Bank of Nova Scotia (NYSE:BNS - Free Report) TSE: BNS during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 7,385 shares of the bank's stock, valued at approximately $397,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich purchased a new stake in Bank of Nova Scotia in the fourth quarter worth approximately $31,000. Allworth Financial LP boosted its stake in shares of Bank of Nova Scotia by 121.1% in the 4th quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 639 shares of the bank's stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 350 shares during the last quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets grew its holdings in shares of Bank of Nova Scotia by 1,588.2% in the third quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 861 shares of the bank's stock worth $47,000 after acquiring an additional 810 shares during the period. Fortitude Family Office LLC bought a new stake in shares of Bank of Nova Scotia in the fourth quarter worth $73,000. Finally, Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB purchased a new position in Bank of Nova Scotia in the third quarter worth about $111,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 49.13% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have issued reports on BNS shares. Royal Bank of Canada cut their price target on Bank of Nova Scotia from $83.00 to $81.00 and set a "sector perform" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. Cibc World Mkts cut shares of Bank of Nova Scotia from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. Finally, CIBC reiterated a "neutral" rating on shares of Bank of Nova Scotia in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Bank of Nova Scotia presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $81.00.

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Bank of Nova Scotia Stock Down 1.2 %

BNS traded down $0.60 during trading on Friday, hitting $47.74. The stock had a trading volume of 3,683,865 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,641,301. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a current ratio of 1.03. The company has a market capitalization of $59.46 billion, a PE ratio of 11.05, a PEG ratio of 1.16 and a beta of 1.11. The Bank of Nova Scotia has a twelve month low of $43.68 and a twelve month high of $57.07. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $49.87 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $52.33.

Bank of Nova Scotia Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 28th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 1st will be given a dividend of $0.7415 per share. This represents a $2.97 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.21%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, April 1st. Bank of Nova Scotia's dividend payout ratio is presently 82.77%.

Bank of Nova Scotia Profile

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.