Jones Financial Companies Lllp Increases Stock Holdings in The Bank of Nova Scotia (NYSE:BNS)

Jones Financial Companies Lllp boosted its position in shares of The Bank of Nova Scotia (NYSE:BNS) (TSE:BNS) by 74.0% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 43,814 shares of the bank’s stock after acquiring an additional 18,628 shares during the period. Jones Financial Companies Lllp’s holdings in Bank of Nova Scotia were worth $2,354,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp boosted its holdings in Bank of Nova Scotia by 260.1% in the 3rd quarter. BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp now owns 5,480,486 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $298,575,000 after purchasing an additional 3,958,580 shares during the period. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund raised its position in shares of Bank of Nova Scotia by 24.9% in the third quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund now owns 11,757,961 shares of the bank’s stock worth $640,624,000 after buying an additional 2,346,995 shares in the last quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank boosted its stake in Bank of Nova Scotia by 9.6% during the third quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank now owns 24,990,868 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $1,361,752,000 after buying an additional 2,195,604 shares during the period. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company boosted its stake in Bank of Nova Scotia by 17.5% during the third quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 4,438,129 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $241,981,000 after buying an additional 660,097 shares during the period. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in Bank of Nova Scotia by 10.3% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 5,640,471 shares of the bank’s stock worth $310,817,000 after buying an additional 524,496 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 49.13% of the company’s stock.

Bank of Nova Scotia Stock Up 0.2 %

Shares of NYSE BNS opened at $48.59 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $60.53 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.25, a PEG ratio of 1.16 and a beta of 1.11. The Bank of Nova Scotia has a one year low of $43.67 and a one year high of $57.07. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $51.35 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $52.48. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59, a current ratio of 1.03 and a quick ratio of 1.03.

Bank of Nova Scotia Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 28th. Investors of record on Tuesday, April 1st will be issued a dividend of $0.7415 per share. This represents a $2.97 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.10%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 1st. Bank of Nova Scotia’s dividend payout ratio is currently 82.77%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have weighed in on the company. Canaccord Genuity Group upgraded Bank of Nova Scotia from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 19th. Barclays raised shares of Bank of Nova Scotia from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. Bank of America raised shares of Bank of Nova Scotia from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. UBS Group upgraded shares of Bank of Nova Scotia from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, November 18th. Finally, Cibc World Mkts downgraded shares of Bank of Nova Scotia from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Bank of Nova Scotia currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $75.50.

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.