Appleton Partners Inc. MA lowered its position in shares of Bank of Nova Scotia (NYSE:BNS) by 7.2% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 10,563 shares of the company’s stock after selling 825 shares during the period. Appleton Partners Inc. MA’s holdings in Bank of Nova Scotia were worth $427,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Bank of Nova Scotia (NYSE:BNS) traded down 2.65% during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $37.43. The stock had a trading volume of 525,141 shares. The company has a market cap of $45.03 billion and a PE ratio of 9.43. Bank of Nova Scotia has a one year low of $35.01 and a one year high of $56.26. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $39.97 and its 200 day moving average price is $44.72.

Bank of Nova Scotia (NYSE:BNS) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, December 1st. The company reported $1.45 EPS for the quarter, topping the Thomson Reuters’ consensus estimate of $1.44 by $0.01. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.32 EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Bank of Nova Scotia will post $5.95 EPS for the current year.

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 27th. Investors of record on Tuesday, January 5th will be given a dividend of $0.5265 per share. This represents a $2.11 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.48%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, December 31st.

BNS has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Desjardins raised shares of Bank of Nova Scotia from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 8th. Scotiabank reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $70.00 target price (down from $72.00) on shares of Bank of Nova Scotia in a report on Thursday, December 3rd. RBC Capital cut their target price on shares of Bank of Nova Scotia from $73.00 to $72.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, December 2nd. National Bank Financial reissued a “sector perform” rating and issued a $60.00 target price on shares of Bank of Nova Scotia in a report on Thursday. Finally, Zacks Investment Research raised shares of Bank of Nova Scotia from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $53.00 target price for the company in a report on Monday, November 2nd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company. The stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $65.25.

The Bank of Nova Scotia (NYSE:BNS) is a Canada-based diversified financial institution. The Bank offered a range of products and services, including retail, commercial, corporate and investment banking to more than 21 million customers in more than 55 countries around the world. The Bank has four business lines: Canadian Banking, International Banking, Scotia Capital and Global Wealth Management. The Canadian Banking segment provided a range of banking and investing services to more than 7.7 million customers across Canada, through a network of 1,190 branches, 3,869 automated banking machine (ABMs), as well as telephone, Internet banking and third-party channels. International Banking includes Scotiabank’s retail and commercial banking operations in more than 55 countries outside Canada. Global Wealth Management (GWM) consists of wealth management insurance and Global Transaction Banking businesses.

12 Month Chart for NYSE:BNS

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