Investment Management Corp of Ontario Boosts Holdings in Bank Of Montreal $BMO

Investment Management Corp of Ontario increased its holdings in Bank Of Montreal (NYSE:BMO) (TSE:BMO) by 49.8% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 185,538 shares of the bank’s stock after acquiring an additional 61,662 shares during the quarter. Investment Management Corp of Ontario’s holdings in Bank Of Montreal were worth $24,081,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Janus Henderson Group PLC raised its holdings in Bank Of Montreal by 10.9% during the 4th quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 62,227 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $8,097,000 after buying an additional 6,100 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of Bank Of Montreal by 500.4% during the 4th quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 275,988 shares of the bank’s stock worth $35,839,000 after buying an additional 230,020 shares in the last quarter. BCV Asset Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Bank Of Montreal during the 4th quarter worth $84,978,000. Lazard Asset Management LLC grew 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 buying an additional 958 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cetera Investment Advisers boosted its position in Bank Of Montreal by 2.1% during the fourth quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 51,967 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $6,745,000 after purchasing an additional 1,044 shares in the last quarter. 45.82% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Barclays reaffirmed an “underweight” rating on shares of Bank Of Montreal in a research report on Thursday, May 28th. Desjardins restated a “hold” rating on shares of Bank Of Montreal in a research note on Thursday, May 28th. Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Bank Of Montreal in a research report on Thursday, May 28th. National Bank Financial reiterated a “sector perform” rating on shares of Bank Of Montreal in a research report on Wednesday, February 25th. Finally, Scotiabank restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Bank Of Montreal in a research report on Tuesday. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Bank Of Montreal presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $163.00.

Bank Of Montreal Stock Performance

Shares of Bank Of Montreal stock opened at $169.82 on Thursday. Bank Of Montreal has a 52 week low of $104.08 and a 52 week high of $171.69. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $156.04 and its 200-day simple moving average is $143.17. The firm has a market cap of $118.94 billion, a PE ratio of 18.03, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.95 and a beta of 0.95. The company has a quick ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11.

Bank Of Montreal (NYSE:BMO) (TSE:BMO) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 27th. The bank reported $2.68 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.54 by $0.14. The firm had revenue of $7.04 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.98 billion. Bank Of Montreal had a return on equity of 13.04% and a net margin of 12.60%.The company’s quarterly revenue was up 10.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $2.62 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that Bank Of Montreal will post 11.82 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 Wednesday, August 26th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, July 30th will be issued a $1.71 dividend. This represents a $6.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.0%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, July 30th. This is an increase from Bank Of Montreal’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.67. Bank Of Montreal’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 50.96%.

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.