22,065 Shares in The Bank of Nova Scotia (NYSE:BNS) Acquired by Ewing Morris & Co. Investment Partners Ltd.

Ewing Morris & Co. Investment Partners Ltd. acquired a new stake in The Bank of Nova Scotia (NYSE:BNS) (TSE:BNS) in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund acquired 22,065 shares of the bank’s stock, valued at approximately $1,185,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of BNS. Murphy & Mullick Capital Management Corp acquired a new stake in Bank of Nova Scotia in the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich bought a new stake in shares of Bank of Nova Scotia during the fourth quarter worth about $31,000. Allworth Financial LP raised its holdings in shares of Bank of Nova Scotia by 121.1% in the 4th quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 639 shares of the bank’s stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 350 shares during the last quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC acquired a new position in Bank of Nova Scotia during the 4th quarter valued at about $73,000. Finally, Atlas Capital Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in Bank of Nova Scotia during the 4th quarter worth approximately $83,000. Institutional investors own 49.13% of the company’s stock.

Bank of Nova Scotia Price Performance

BNS opened at $50.06 on Friday. The Bank of Nova Scotia has a fifty-two week low of $43.68 and a fifty-two week high of $57.07. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $47.95 and a 200 day moving average of $51.21. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a current ratio of 1.03. The firm has a market cap of $62.35 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.59, a PEG ratio of 1.16 and a beta of 1.11.

Bank of Nova Scotia Cuts Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 28th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 1st were issued a dividend of $0.7415 per share. This represents a $2.97 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.93%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, April 1st. Bank of Nova Scotia’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 83.05%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently issued reports on the company. CIBC reaffirmed a “neutral” rating on shares of Bank of Nova Scotia in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. 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 report on Wednesday, February 26th. Bank of America downgraded shares of Bank of Nova Scotia from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, March 31st. Finally, Cibc World Mkts cut 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, five have given a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $81.00.

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.