Bank Of Montreal (NYSE:BMO) Receives Average Recommendation of “Hold” from Brokerages

Shares of Bank Of Montreal (NYSE:BMO) (TSE:BMO) have been assigned a consensus rating of “Hold” from the twelve brokerages that are covering the company, MarketBeat Ratings reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, six have given a hold recommendation and five have given a buy recommendation to the company.

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on BMO. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods began coverage on shares of Bank Of Montreal in a research report on Friday, August 21st. They set an “outperform” rating on the stock. Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce lowered Bank Of Montreal from a “sector outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 18th. Scotiabank reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Bank Of Montreal in a research note on Wednesday, August 26th. Barclays reiterated an “underweight” rating on shares of Bank Of Montreal in a report on Friday, August 21st. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating on shares of Bank Of Montreal in a research note on Thursday, August 27th.

Bank Of Montreal Stock Performance

Shares of BMO stock opened at $165.74 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $115.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.71, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.99 and a beta of 0.95. Bank Of Montreal has a 52 week low of $119.84 and a 52 week high of $187.22. The company has a quick ratio of 1.01, a current ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $175.55 and a 200-day moving average of $164.53.

Bank Of Montreal (NYSE:BMO) (TSE:BMO) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, August 25th. The bank reported $2.84 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.71 by $0.13. Bank Of Montreal had a net margin of 11.72% and a return on equity of 13.60%. The company had revenue of $7.10 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.94 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $3.23 EPS. Bank Of Montreal’s quarterly revenue was up 10.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts forecast that Bank Of Montreal will post 10.76 earnings per share for the current year.

Bank Of Montreal Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, November 26th. Shareholders of record on Friday, October 30th will be issued a dividend of C$1.71 per share. This represents a $6.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 30th. Bank Of Montreal’s payout ratio is currently 54.29%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Bank Of Montreal

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. TD Asset Management Inc increased its holdings in Bank Of Montreal by 1.5% in the 4th quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 19,372,601 shares of the bank’s stock worth $2,519,180,000 after acquiring an additional 293,575 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Bank Of Montreal during the fourth quarter valued at about $1,059,320,000. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board bought a new position in Bank Of Montreal during the second quarter worth about $1,281,220,000. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its position in Bank Of Montreal by 6.7% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 7,030,219 shares of the bank’s stock worth $932,242,000 after purchasing an additional 442,812 shares during the period. Finally, TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. increased its stake in shares of Bank Of Montreal by 2.0% in the second quarter. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. now owns 6,350,903 shares of the bank’s stock worth $1,128,680,000 after purchasing an additional 123,387 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 45.82% of the company’s stock.

About Bank Of Montreal

Bank of Montreal, operating under the BMO Financial Group name, is a diversified financial services company headquartered in Montreal, Quebec. Founded in 1817, it is one of Canada’s largest banks and the country’s oldest continuously operating bank.

BMO provides personal and commercial banking services, including deposit accounts, lending, mortgages, credit cards, payment solutions and cash-management products. Through its wealth management businesses, the company offers investment, advisory, private banking, asset-management and retirement-planning services to individuals, families and institutions.

The company also operates a capital markets business that provides investment banking, corporate lending, financial advisory, trading, research and other services to corporations, governments and institutional clients.