Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich Invests $31,000 in The Bank of Nova Scotia (NYSE:BNS)

Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich purchased a new stake in shares of The Bank of Nova Scotia (NYSE:BNS) (TSE:BNS) in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm purchased 584 shares of the bank’s stock, valued at approximately $31,000.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of BNS. Sigma Planning Corp increased its holdings in shares of Bank of Nova Scotia by 1.9% during the 3rd quarter. Sigma Planning Corp now owns 11,089 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $604,000 after purchasing an additional 210 shares in the last quarter. Addison Advisors LLC grew its position in Bank of Nova Scotia by 7.3% during the third quarter. Addison Advisors LLC now owns 3,357 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $183,000 after buying an additional 227 shares during the period. Cumberland Partners Ltd increased its holdings in Bank of Nova Scotia by 0.6% in the third quarter. Cumberland Partners Ltd now owns 76,030 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $4,147,000 after buying an additional 451 shares in the last quarter. Plato Investment Management Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Bank of Nova Scotia in the third quarter worth about $179,000. Finally, CIBC Asset Management Inc boosted its stake in shares of Bank of Nova Scotia by 2.4% during the 3rd quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 10,074,518 shares of the bank’s stock worth $550,729,000 after acquiring an additional 240,803 shares in the last quarter. 49.13% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on BNS shares. Bank of America raised Bank of Nova Scotia from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 19th. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their target price on Bank of Nova Scotia from $83.00 to $81.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. CIBC reissued a “neutral” rating on shares of Bank of Nova Scotia in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. Canaccord Genuity Group upgraded shares of Bank of Nova Scotia from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 19th. Finally, Cibc World Mkts lowered shares of Bank of Nova Scotia from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Bank of Nova Scotia presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $75.50.

Bank of Nova Scotia Stock Down 0.5 %

Shares of BNS opened at $47.57 on Wednesday. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $50.89 and a 200 day moving average price of $52.52. 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 stock has a market capitalization of $59.24 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.01, a PEG ratio of 1.16 and a beta of 1.11. The Bank of Nova Scotia has a one year low of $43.67 and a one year high of $57.07.

Bank of Nova Scotia Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 28th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, April 1st will be given a $0.7415 dividend. This represents a $2.97 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.24%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, April 1st. Bank of Nova Scotia’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 82.77%.

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.