Bank of Nova Scotia (TSE:BNS) Hits New 12-Month High – Time to Buy?

The Bank of Nova Scotia (TSE:BNS) (NYSE:BNS) shares hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Wednesday. The stock traded as high as C$134.78 and last traded at C$134.53, with a volume of 1,758,223 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at C$131.17.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have commented on BNS. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price target on Bank of Nova Scotia from C$119.00 to C$120.00 in a research report on Thursday, September 3rd. Canaccord Genuity Group increased their price target on shares of Bank of Nova Scotia from C$121.00 to C$127.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 26th. Barclays lifted their price target on shares of Bank of Nova Scotia from C$110.00 to C$130.00 in a research report on Friday, August 21st. National Bank Financial raised shares of Bank of Nova Scotia from a “hold” rating to an “outperform” rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from C$128.00 to C$142.00 in a research note on Wednesday, August 26th. Finally, Desjardins set a C$130.00 target price on shares of Bank of Nova Scotia and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 2nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have given a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Bank of Nova Scotia presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of C$129.50.

Bank of Nova Scotia Price Performance

The firm’s 50 day moving average price is C$129.63 and its 200-day moving average price is C$114.74. The stock has a market cap of C$163.73 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.59, a P/E/G ratio of 1.33 and a beta of 1.21.

Bank of Nova Scotia (TSE:BNS) (NYSE:BNS) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 25th. The bank reported C$2.28 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. The business had revenue of C$10.54 billion for the quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia had a return on equity of 11.41% and a net margin of 14.08%. On average, analysts expect that The Bank of Nova Scotia will post 7.13 earnings per share for the current year.

Bank of Nova Scotia Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, October 28th. Investors of record on Wednesday, October 28th were given a dividend of $1.14 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, October 6th. This represents a $4.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.4%. Bank of Nova Scotia’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 58.04%.

Bank of Nova Scotia Company Profile

Scotiabank’s vision is to be our clients’ most trusted financial partner and deliver sustainable, profitable growth. Guided by our purpose: ‘for every future,’ we help our clients, their families and their communities achieve success through a broad range of advice, products, and services, including personal and commercial banking, wealth management and private banking, corporate and investment banking, and capital markets. With assets of approximately $1.5 trillion (as at January 31, 2026), Scotiabank is one of the largest banks in North America by assets, and trades on the Toronto Stock Exchange (TSX: BNS) and New York Stock Exchange (NYSE: BNS).