Americana Partners LLC Buys Shares of 93,600 The Bank of Nova Scotia (NYSE:BNS)

Americana Partners LLC bought a new stake in The Bank of Nova Scotia (NYSE:BNS) (TSE:BNS) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 93,600 shares of the bank’s stock, valued at approximately $5,028,000.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of BNS. Creative Planning lifted its holdings in Bank of Nova Scotia by 2.3% in the third quarter. Creative Planning now owns 36,568 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $1,993,000 after acquiring an additional 807 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its holdings in Bank of Nova Scotia by 171.6% in the third quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,578 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $86,000 after acquiring an additional 997 shares during the period. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC bought a new position in Bank of Nova Scotia in the third quarter valued at about $221,000. Signaturefd LLC lifted its holdings in Bank of Nova Scotia by 1.2% in the third quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 18,470 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $1,006,000 after acquiring an additional 216 shares during the period. Finally, International Assets Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in Bank of Nova Scotia by 138.9% in the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 123,358 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $67,220,000 after acquiring an additional 71,712 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 49.13% of the company’s stock.

Bank of Nova Scotia Stock Performance

NYSE:BNS opened at $51.22 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 1.03, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59. The Bank of Nova Scotia has a 12-month low of $43.67 and a 12-month high of $57.07. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $52.51 and a 200 day moving average price of $52.09. The stock has a market capitalization of $63.80 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.86, a P/E/G ratio of 1.15 and a beta of 1.07.

Bank of Nova Scotia Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, January 29th. Investors of record on Tuesday, January 7th were given a dividend of $0.7535 per share. This represents a $3.01 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.88%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, January 7th. Bank of Nova Scotia’s dividend payout ratio is currently 68.06%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

BNS has been the topic of several recent research reports. Canaccord Genuity Group raised Bank of Nova Scotia from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. UBS Group raised Bank of Nova Scotia from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, November 18th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price objective on Bank of Nova Scotia from $65.00 to $74.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. Canaccord Genuity Group raised Bank of Nova Scotia from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note 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 research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating, five have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Bank of Nova Scotia currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $72.00.

About Bank of Nova Scotia

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.