Bank Of Montreal (NYSE:BMO) Receives $163.00 Consensus PT from Analysts

Shares of Bank Of Montreal (NYSE:BMO) (TSE:BMO) have been assigned a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the ten brokerages that are covering the stock, Marketbeat reports. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, three have issued a buy recommendation and one has assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month target price among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $163.00.

BMO has been the topic of several analyst reports. Raymond James Financial raised shares of Bank Of Montreal from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Bank Of Montreal in a research note on Monday, December 29th. National Bank Financial cut shares of Bank Of Montreal from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, December 1st. Scotiabank reissued a “sector perform” rating on shares of Bank Of Montreal in a research note on Friday, January 9th. Finally, TD Securities raised Bank Of Montreal from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 27th.

Bank Of Montreal Stock Up 0.3%

Shares of Bank Of Montreal stock opened at $141.41 on Friday. Bank Of Montreal has a 12-month low of $85.40 and a 12-month high of $146.35. The firm has a market capitalization of $99.87 billion, a PE ratio of 17.33, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.15 and a beta of 0.94. The company has a quick ratio of 1.00, a current ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $135.17 and its 200-day moving average is $127.65.

Bank Of Montreal (NYSE:BMO) (TSE:BMO) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, December 4th. The bank reported $2.36 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.16 by $0.20. The firm had revenue of $6.67 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.51 billion. Bank Of Montreal had a return on equity of 11.76% and a net margin of 11.13%.Bank Of Montreal’s revenue was up 5.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.90 EPS. Equities analysts anticipate that Bank Of Montreal will post 7.71 earnings per share for the current year.

Bank Of Montreal Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, February 26th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 30th will be given a dividend of $1.67 per share. This represents a $6.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.7%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 30th. This is a boost from Bank Of Montreal’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.63. Bank Of Montreal’s dividend payout ratio is 59.68%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Bank Of Montreal

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in BMO. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Bank Of Montreal by 500.4% during the fourth quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 275,988 shares of the bank’s stock worth $35,839,000 after acquiring an additional 230,020 shares in the last quarter. BCV Asset Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Bank Of Montreal in the fourth quarter valued at about $84,978,000. Lazard Asset Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Bank Of Montreal by 50.5% during the 4th quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 2,855 shares of the bank’s stock worth $371,000 after purchasing an additional 958 shares during the last quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers boosted its position in shares of Bank Of Montreal by 2.1% in the fourth quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 51,967 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $6,745,000 after acquiring an additional 1,044 shares during the period. Finally, Guardian Partners Inc. grew its position in Bank Of Montreal by 9.8% in the 4th quarter. Guardian Partners Inc. now owns 371,924 shares of the bank’s stock worth $52,160,000 after purchasing an additional 33,190 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 45.82% of the company’s stock.

Bank Of Montreal Company Profile

Bank of Montreal (NYSE:BMO), commonly known as BMO Financial Group, is one of Canada’s largest and longest-established banks. Founded in Montreal and headquartered in Montreal, Quebec, the bank provides a broad range of financial services to retail, commercial, corporate and institutional clients. BMO is publicly listed in both Canada and the United States and operates under a consolidated financial services model that integrates banking, capital markets, wealth management and asset management activities.

BMO’s core businesses include personal and commercial banking—offering checking and savings accounts, lending, mortgages, and small-business services—alongside wealth management and private banking through its asset and investment management divisions.