The Bank of Nova Scotia (NYSE:BNS) Shares Acquired by The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company

The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company lifted its stake in shares of The Bank of Nova Scotia (NYSE:BNS) (TSE:BNS) by 17.5% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 4,438,129 shares of the bank’s stock after purchasing an additional 660,097 shares during the period. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company owned about 0.36% of Bank of Nova Scotia worth $241,981,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of BNS. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC lifted its stake in Bank of Nova Scotia by 5,380.9% during the third quarter. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC now owns 3,972,234 shares of the bank’s stock worth $216,447,000 after purchasing an additional 3,899,760 shares during the last quarter. Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC acquired a new stake in Bank of Nova Scotia during the second quarter worth about $120,463,000. BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp lifted its holdings in Bank of Nova Scotia by 2,455.8% in the second quarter. BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp now owns 1,521,906 shares of the bank’s stock worth $69,627,000 after acquiring an additional 1,462,360 shares during the last quarter. Nicola Wealth Management LTD. boosted its stake in Bank of Nova Scotia by 53.3% in the second quarter. Nicola Wealth Management LTD. now owns 2,300,000 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $105,156,000 after acquiring an additional 800,000 shares during the period. Finally, Mackenzie Financial Corp grew its holdings in shares of Bank of Nova Scotia by 4.7% during the second quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 15,091,880 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $690,438,000 after purchasing an additional 683,946 shares during the last quarter. 49.13% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently commented on BNS shares. Canaccord Genuity Group upgraded Bank of Nova Scotia from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. TD Securities upgraded shares of Bank of Nova Scotia from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, November 4th. Bank of America upgraded shares of Bank of Nova Scotia from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 19th. UBS Group raised shares of Bank of Nova Scotia from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, November 18th. Finally, Barclays upgraded shares of Bank of Nova Scotia from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating, five have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Bank of Nova Scotia has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $69.00.

Bank of Nova Scotia Stock Performance

Shares of BNS opened at $56.55 on Tuesday. The Bank of Nova Scotia has a 52 week low of $41.80 and a 52 week high of $56.79. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a current ratio of 1.02. The company has a market capitalization of $70.37 billion, a PE ratio of 13.53, a PEG ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 1.05. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $53.49 and its 200 day moving average price is $49.49.

Bank of Nova Scotia (NYSE:BNS) (TSE:BNS) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 27th. The bank reported $1.63 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.62 by $0.01. Bank of Nova Scotia had a return on equity of 11.14% and a net margin of 9.84%. The business had revenue of $8.36 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.53 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.30 earnings per share. Bank of Nova Scotia’s quarterly revenue was up 3.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts expect that The Bank of Nova Scotia will post 4.53 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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.