Bank Of Montreal $BMO Stake Lowered by Crossmark Global Holdings Inc.

Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. cut its stake in Bank Of Montreal (NYSE:BMO) (TSE:BMO) by 35.2% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 15,976 shares of the bank’s stock after selling 8,661 shares during the quarter. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc.’s holdings in Bank Of Montreal were worth $2,074,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of BMO. Larson Financial Group LLC boosted its position in Bank Of Montreal by 466.7% during 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. WFA of San Diego LLC acquired a new position in Bank Of Montreal in the 2nd quarter worth about $28,000. Flagship Harbor Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Bank Of Montreal during the 4th quarter worth about $34,000. Sunbelt Securities Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Bank Of Montreal during the 3rd quarter valued at about $42,000. Finally, Bayforest Capital Ltd lifted its holdings in shares of Bank Of Montreal by 669.6% during the 4th quarter. Bayforest Capital Ltd now owns 354 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $46,000 after buying an additional 308 shares during the last quarter. 45.82% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms recently commented on BMO. Barclays downgraded Bank Of Montreal from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating in a report on Friday, March 20th. Raymond James Financial upgraded shares of Bank Of Montreal from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, February 13th. TD Securities upgraded shares of Bank Of Montreal from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 27th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Bank Of Montreal from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Sunday, February 8th. Finally, Scotiabank reiterated a “sector perform” rating on shares of Bank Of Montreal in a report on Monday, May 4th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have assigned a Buy rating, seven have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $163.00.

Bank Of Montreal Stock Up 0.1%

Shares of BMO stock opened at $153.00 on Tuesday. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $143.67 and its 200 day simple moving average is $136.05. Bank Of Montreal has a twelve month low of $100.75 and a twelve month high of $156.00. 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 $107.23 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.77, a PEG ratio of 0.98 and a beta of 0.94.

Bank Of Montreal (NYSE:BMO) (TSE:BMO) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 25th. The bank reported $2.51 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.35 by $0.16. Bank Of Montreal had a return on equity of 12.16% and a net margin of 11.76%.The company had revenue of $7.21 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.73 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $3.04 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts predict that Bank Of Montreal will post 10.25 EPS for the current year.

Bank Of Montreal Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, May 26th. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 29th will be issued a dividend of $1.67 per share. This represents a $6.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 29th. Bank Of Montreal’s dividend payout ratio is currently 55.75%.

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.