JPMorgan Chase & Co. Decreases Stock Holdings in Bank Of Montreal $BMO

JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut its stake in Bank Of Montreal (NYSE:BMO) (TSE:BMO) by 1.5% in the third quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 4,034,186 shares of the bank’s stock after selling 62,740 shares during the quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co.’s holdings in Bank Of Montreal were worth $525,453,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of BMO. True Wealth Design LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Bank Of Montreal in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $28,000. WFA of San Diego LLC purchased a new stake in Bank Of Montreal during the second quarter worth $28,000. Larson Financial Group LLC grew its holdings in Bank Of Montreal by 466.7% in the third quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 238 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 196 shares during the last quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. acquired a new stake in Bank Of Montreal in the third quarter valued at $42,000. Finally, Toth Financial Advisory Corp purchased a new position in shares of Bank Of Montreal in the third quarter valued at $52,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 45.82% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have recently issued reports on BMO. Scotiabank reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating on shares of Bank Of Montreal in a research note on Friday, January 9th. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Bank Of Montreal in a research report on Monday, December 29th. TD Securities raised shares of Bank Of Montreal from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 27th. Raymond James Financial upgraded shares of Bank Of Montreal from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, February 13th. Finally, National Bank Financial restated a “sector perform” rating on shares of Bank Of Montreal in a research report on Wednesday, February 25th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have issued a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Bank Of Montreal presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $163.00.

Bank Of Montreal Stock Performance

Shares of BMO opened at $139.93 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a current ratio of 1.02. The company has a market capitalization of $98.82 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.25, a PEG ratio of 0.96 and a beta of 0.92. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $140.06 and its 200 day simple moving average is $131.68. Bank Of Montreal has a 1 year low of $85.40 and a 1 year high of $149.01.

Bank Of Montreal (NYSE:BMO) (TSE:BMO) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 25th. The bank reported $2.51 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.35 by $0.16. The firm had revenue of $7.21 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.73 billion. Bank Of Montreal had a net margin of 11.76% and a return on equity of 12.16%. Bank Of Montreal’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $3.04 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Bank Of Montreal will post 7.71 EPS for the current year.

Bank Of Montreal Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, May 26th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, April 29th will be issued a dividend of $1.67 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 29th. This represents a $6.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.8%. Bank Of Montreal’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 56.79%.

About Bank Of Montreal

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.