The Bank of Nova Scotia (NYSE:BNS) Short Interest Up 9.3% in November

The Bank of Nova Scotia (NYSE:BNS) (TSE:BNS) saw a significant growth in short interest in the month of November. As of November 15th, there was short interest totalling 29,340,000 shares, a growth of 9.3% from the October 31st total of 26,850,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 1,590,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 18.5 days. Currently, 2.4% of the company’s shares are sold short.

Bank of Nova Scotia Trading Up 1.0 %

Shares of Bank of Nova Scotia stock traded up $0.53 on Wednesday, reaching $55.31. The company had a trading volume of 695,311 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,758,799. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $53.85 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $49.84. The firm has a market cap of $68.83 billion, a PE ratio of 13.22, a PEG ratio of 1.46 and a beta of 1.07. Bank of Nova Scotia has a 52-week low of $43.67 and a 52-week high of $57.07. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a current ratio of 1.02.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have commented on BNS. UBS Group raised shares of Bank of Nova Scotia from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, November 18th. Canaccord Genuity Group raised shares of Bank of Nova Scotia from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. Barclays raised shares of Bank of Nova Scotia from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. Canaccord Genuity Group raised shares of Bank of Nova Scotia from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. Finally, Bank of America raised shares of Bank of Nova Scotia from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating, five have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Bank of Nova Scotia has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $72.00.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Bank of Nova Scotia

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in BNS. Toronto Dominion Bank grew its holdings in Bank of Nova Scotia by 9.6% during the 3rd quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank now owns 24,990,868 shares of the bank’s stock worth $1,361,752,000 after acquiring an additional 2,195,604 shares in the last quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp grew its holdings in 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 worth $690,438,000 after acquiring an additional 683,946 shares in the last quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund grew its holdings in Bank of Nova Scotia by 24.9% during the 3rd quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund now owns 11,757,961 shares of the bank’s stock worth $640,624,000 after acquiring an additional 2,346,995 shares in the last quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc grew its holdings in 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. Finally, Legal & General Group Plc grew its holdings in Bank of Nova Scotia by 0.6% during the 2nd quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 9,281,724 shares of the bank’s stock worth $424,497,000 after acquiring an additional 57,796 shares in the last quarter. 49.13% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.