The Bank of Nova Scotia (NYSE:BNS) Short Interest Up 18.4% in September

The Bank of Nova Scotia (NYSE:BNS) (TSE:BNS) saw a large increase in short interest in the month of September. As of September 30th, there was short interest totalling 34,990,000 shares, an increase of 18.4% from the September 15th total of 29,550,000 shares. Approximately 2.8% of the shares of the stock are sold short. Based on an average trading volume of 1,710,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 20.5 days.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts recently issued reports on BNS shares. UBS Group started coverage on Bank of Nova Scotia in a research report on Tuesday, July 2nd. They set a “neutral” rating for the company. Cibc World Mkts upgraded Bank of Nova Scotia from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, September 20th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $69.00.

Institutional Trading of Bank of Nova Scotia

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Rathbones Group PLC grew its stake in Bank of Nova Scotia by 11.8% in the 2nd quarter. Rathbones Group PLC now owns 136,337 shares of the bank’s stock worth $6,235,000 after acquiring an additional 14,379 shares during the period. Tobam grew its stake in shares of Bank of Nova Scotia by 49.7% during the 1st quarter. Tobam now owns 4,130 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $214,000 after buying an additional 1,371 shares during the period. BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp grew its stake in shares of Bank of Nova Scotia by 2,455.8% during the 2nd quarter. BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp now owns 1,521,906 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $69,627,000 after buying an additional 1,462,360 shares during the period. Mackenzie Financial Corp grew its stake in shares of Bank of Nova Scotia by 4.7% during the 2nd quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 15,091,880 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $690,438,000 after buying an additional 683,946 shares during the period. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP grew its stake in shares of Bank of Nova Scotia by 1.5% during the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 2,280,248 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $111,232,000 after buying an additional 33,490 shares during the period. 49.13% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Bank of Nova Scotia Trading Up 1.4 %

BNS stock traded up $0.72 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $53.55. The stock had a trading volume of 466,027 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,829,342. The firm has a market cap of $65.84 billion, a PE ratio of 11.91, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.64 and a beta of 1.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61, a current ratio of 1.02 and a quick ratio of 1.02. Bank of Nova Scotia has a 12-month low of $39.79 and a 12-month high of $55.12. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $50.68 and its 200 day moving average price is $48.30.

Bank of Nova Scotia (NYSE:BNS) (TSE:BNS) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, August 27th. The bank reported $1.63 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.62 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $8.36 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $8.53 billion. Bank of Nova Scotia had a net margin of 9.84% and a return on equity of 11.14%. Bank of Nova Scotia’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.30 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that Bank of Nova Scotia will post 4.8 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Bank of Nova Scotia Cuts Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 29th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, October 2nd will be paid a $0.768 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, October 2nd. This represents a $3.07 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.74%. Bank of Nova Scotia’s payout ratio is currently 70.50%.

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.