Bank of Nova Scotia (NYSE:BNS) Given New $81.00 Price Target at Royal Bank of Canada

Bank of Nova Scotia (NYSE:BNS) (TSE:BNS) had its target price lowered by Royal Bank of Canada from $83.00 to $81.00 in a research report sent to investors on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. Royal Bank of Canada currently has a sector perform rating on the bank’s stock.

A number of other research analysts have also commented on BNS. UBS Group raised Bank of Nova Scotia from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, November 18th. TD Securities raised Bank of Nova Scotia from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, November 4th. Barclays raised Bank of Nova Scotia from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, November 21st. Canaccord Genuity Group raised Bank of Nova Scotia from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 19th. Finally, Bank of America raised Bank of Nova Scotia from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $75.50.

Bank of Nova Scotia Price Performance

Shares of BNS opened at $50.45 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $62.84 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.68, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.16 and a beta of 1.07. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a current ratio of 1.03. Bank of Nova Scotia has a one year low of $43.67 and a one year high of $57.07. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $51.79 and its 200-day moving average is $52.37.

Bank of Nova Scotia Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed 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. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 1st. This represents a $2.97 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.88%. Bank of Nova Scotia’s payout ratio is presently 68.06%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Bank of Nova Scotia

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of BNS. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its position in Bank of Nova Scotia by 171.6% during the 3rd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,578 shares of the bank’s stock worth $86,000 after acquiring an additional 997 shares during the period. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Bank of Nova Scotia during the 3rd quarter worth about $221,000. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. boosted its position in Bank of Nova Scotia by 110.1% during the 3rd quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 91,862 shares of the bank’s stock worth $5,011,000 after acquiring an additional 48,147 shares during the period. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC boosted its position in Bank of Nova Scotia by 5,380.9% during the 3rd quarter. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC now owns 3,972,234 shares of the bank’s stock worth $216,447,000 after acquiring an additional 3,899,760 shares during the period. Finally, First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. raised its stake in shares of Bank of Nova Scotia by 12.5% during the 3rd quarter. First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. now owns 7,890 shares of the bank’s stock worth $430,000 after purchasing an additional 878 shares in the last quarter. 49.13% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.