The Bank of Nova Scotia (NYSE:BNS) Shares Sold by Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp

Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp lessened its holdings in The Bank of Nova Scotia (NYSE:BNS) (TSE:BNS) by 26.8% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 41,564 shares of the bank’s stock after selling 15,200 shares during the quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp’s holdings in Bank of Nova Scotia were worth $2,236,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of the business. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Bank of Nova Scotia by 10.3% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 5,640,471 shares of the bank’s stock worth $310,817,000 after purchasing an additional 524,496 shares in the last quarter. Galibier Capital Management Ltd. lifted its stake in shares of Bank of Nova Scotia by 38,283.3% during the fourth quarter. Galibier Capital Management Ltd. now owns 476,721 shares of the bank’s stock worth $25,586,000 after buying an additional 475,479 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its holdings in shares of Bank of Nova Scotia by 7.6% during the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 1,095,285 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $58,839,000 after buying an additional 77,820 shares during the last quarter. Mediolanum International Funds Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Bank of Nova Scotia in the 4th quarter valued at $292,000. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. raised its stake in Bank of Nova Scotia by 98.6% in the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 3,134 shares of the bank’s stock worth $171,000 after acquiring an additional 1,556 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 49.13% of the company’s stock.

Bank of Nova Scotia Price Performance

Shares of NYSE BNS opened at $47.44 on Tuesday. 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 has a market capitalization of $59.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.98, a PEG ratio of 1.16 and a beta of 1.11. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $49.80 and its 200-day simple moving average is $52.30. The Bank of Nova Scotia has a 12 month low of $43.68 and a 12 month high of $57.07.

Bank of Nova Scotia Cuts Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 28th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 1st will be issued a $0.7415 dividend. 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 6.25%. Bank of Nova Scotia’s payout ratio is 82.77%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on BNS. Cibc World Mkts lowered Bank of Nova Scotia from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. CIBC reiterated a “neutral” rating on shares of Bank of Nova Scotia in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. Bank of America cut shares of Bank of Nova Scotia from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada cut their price objective on shares of Bank of Nova Scotia from $83.00 to $81.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $81.00.

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.