Pathway Financial Advisers LLC Decreases Stock Holdings in The Bank of Nova Scotia (NYSE:BNS)

Pathway Financial Advisers LLC cut its stake in The Bank of Nova Scotia (NYSE:BNS) (TSE:BNS) by 98.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 73,690 shares of the bank’s stock after selling 3,898,544 shares during the period. Bank of Nova Scotia makes up approximately 1.3% of Pathway Financial Advisers LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 22nd largest holding. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC’s holdings in Bank of Nova Scotia were worth $3,959,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Toronto Dominion Bank grew its holdings in Bank of Nova Scotia by 9.6% in the third quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank now owns 24,990,868 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $1,361,752,000 after purchasing an additional 2,195,604 shares during the last quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund grew its stake in Bank of Nova Scotia by 24.9% in the 3rd quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund now owns 11,757,961 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $640,624,000 after acquiring an additional 2,346,995 shares during the last quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc grew its stake in Bank of Nova Scotia by 2.4% in the 3rd quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 10,074,518 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $550,729,000 after acquiring an additional 240,803 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised 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 acquiring an additional 524,496 shares during the last quarter. Finally, BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp raised its position in Bank of Nova Scotia by 260.1% during the third quarter. BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp now owns 5,480,486 shares of the bank’s stock worth $298,575,000 after acquiring an additional 3,958,580 shares during the last quarter. 49.13% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Barclays upgraded Bank of Nova Scotia from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, November 21st. TD Securities upgraded Bank of Nova Scotia from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, November 4th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their target price on shares of Bank of Nova Scotia from $65.00 to $74.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. Canaccord Genuity Group upgraded shares of Bank of Nova Scotia from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 19th. Finally, 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. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating, five have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $72.00.

Bank of Nova Scotia Stock Performance

Bank of Nova Scotia stock opened at $51.05 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $63.58 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.82, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.15 and a beta of 1.07. The Bank of Nova Scotia has a 12 month low of $43.67 and a 12 month high of $57.07. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59, a current ratio of 1.03 and a quick ratio of 1.03. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $52.69 and its 200-day moving average is $52.02.

Bank of Nova Scotia Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, January 29th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, January 7th were given a dividend of $0.7535 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, January 7th. This represents a $3.01 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.90%. Bank of Nova Scotia’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 68.29%.

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.