Bank of Nova Scotia Reduces Holdings in Enbridge Inc (NYSE:ENB)

Bank of Nova Scotia lowered its position in Enbridge Inc (NYSE:ENB) (TSE:ENB) by 35.0% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 7,144,740 shares of the pipeline company’s stock after selling 3,851,073 shares during the quarter. Enbridge comprises 0.8% of Bank of Nova Scotia’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 26th largest holding. Bank of Nova Scotia’s holdings in Enbridge were worth $316,256,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Garde Capital Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Enbridge during the first quarter valued at about $26,000. Financial Gravity Asset Management Inc. bought a new stake in Enbridge during the 1st quarter worth approximately $28,000. GeoWealth Management LLC lifted its stake in Enbridge by 436.4% in the 4th quarter. GeoWealth Management LLC now owns 751 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 611 shares in the last quarter. Wolff Wiese Magana LLC raised its position in shares of Enbridge by 91.3% in the first quarter. Wolff Wiese Magana LLC now owns 765 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $34,000 after buying an additional 365 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Capital A Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Enbridge during the fourth quarter valued at $39,000. 54.60% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have weighed in on ENB. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded Enbridge from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 23rd. BMO Capital Markets restated a “market perform” rating on shares of Enbridge in a research report on Monday, May 12th. Citigroup started coverage on shares of Enbridge in a research report on Friday, April 4th. They set a “buy” rating for the company. National Bankshares reissued a “sector perform” rating on shares of Enbridge in a research note on Monday, May 12th. Finally, Raymond James Financial upgraded shares of Enbridge to a “moderate buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $67.00.

Enbridge Stock Up 2.0%

Shares of NYSE ENB opened at $46.18 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $100.69 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.80, a PEG ratio of 4.22 and a beta of 0.79. Enbridge Inc has a one year low of $36.50 and a one year high of $47.44. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $45.39 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $44.55. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.51, a current ratio of 0.73 and a quick ratio of 0.66.

Enbridge (NYSE:ENB) (TSE:ENB) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, May 9th. The pipeline company reported $0.72 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.68 by $0.04. Enbridge had a net margin of 10.16% and a return on equity of 10.41%. The company had revenue of $7.27 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $10.20 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.92 EPS. As a group, analysts expect that Enbridge Inc will post 2.14 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Enbridge Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 15th will be issued a $0.6839 dividend. This is an increase from Enbridge’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.68. This represents a $2.74 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.9%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 15th. Enbridge’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 140.21%.

Enbridge Profile

Enbridge Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates as an energy infrastructure company. The company operates through five segments: Liquids Pipelines, Gas Transmission and Midstream, Gas Distribution and Storage, Renewable Power Generation, and Energy Services. The Liquids Pipelines segment operates pipelines and related terminals to transport various grades of crude oil and other liquid hydrocarbons in Canada and the United States.