The Bank of Nova Scotia (NYSE:BNS) Shares Acquired by Barclays PLC

Barclays PLC lifted its holdings in The Bank of Nova Scotia (NYSE:BNS - Free Report) TSE: BNS by 59.6% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 343,006 shares of the bank's stock after buying an additional 128,049 shares during the quarter. Barclays PLC's holdings in Bank of Nova Scotia were worth $18,425,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Bank of Nova Scotia during the 4th quarter worth $690,746,000. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in Bank of Nova Scotia by 31.8% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 7,433,171 shares of the bank's stock worth $406,103,000 after buying an additional 1,792,700 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in Bank of Nova Scotia by 1.9% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 51,363,146 shares of the bank's stock worth $2,758,150,000 after buying an additional 969,488 shares during the period. FIL Ltd increased its holdings in Bank of Nova Scotia by 37.8% in the fourth quarter. FIL Ltd now owns 2,582,696 shares of the bank's stock valued at $138,689,000 after buying an additional 708,999 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Bank of Nova Scotia by 370.0% during the 4th quarter. Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. now owns 883,511 shares of the bank's stock valued at $47,391,000 after acquiring an additional 695,519 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 49.13% of the company's stock.

Bank of Nova Scotia Price Performance

Shares of BNS traded up $0.09 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $48.56. 1,254,820 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,693,627. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $48.10 and a 200 day simple moving average of $51.44. The Bank of Nova Scotia has a fifty-two week low of $43.68 and a fifty-two week high of $57.07. The stock has a market capitalization of $60.48 billion, a PE ratio of 11.24, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.16 and a beta of 1.02. The company has a quick ratio of 1.03, a current ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59.

Bank of Nova Scotia Cuts Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 28th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, April 1st will be issued a dividend of $0.7415 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, April 1st. This represents a $2.97 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.11%. Bank of Nova Scotia's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 83.05%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms recently weighed in on BNS. Cibc World Mkts cut Bank of Nova Scotia from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. Bank of America lowered Bank of Nova Scotia from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, March 31st. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price objective on shares of Bank of Nova Scotia from $83.00 to $81.00 and set a "sector perform" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. Finally, CIBC restated a "neutral" rating on shares of Bank of Nova Scotia in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Bank of Nova Scotia currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $81.00.

Bank of Nova Scotia Company 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.