Janney Montgomery Scott LLC Cuts Stock Position in Bank Of Montreal $BMO

Janney Montgomery Scott LLC cut its stake in shares of Bank Of Montreal (NYSE:BMO) (TSE:BMO) by 14.8% in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 16,862 shares of the bank’s stock after selling 2,923 shares during the period. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC’s holdings in Bank Of Montreal were worth $2,282,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Bank Of Montreal during the fourth quarter worth about $29,000. Larson Financial Group LLC raised its position in shares of Bank Of Montreal by 466.7% during the 3rd quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 238 shares of the bank’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 196 shares during the last quarter. WFA of San Diego LLC purchased a new position in Bank Of Montreal in the 2nd quarter valued at about $28,000. Flagship Harbor Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Bank Of Montreal in the 4th quarter worth about $34,000. Finally, Swiss RE Ltd. acquired a new stake in Bank Of Montreal in the 4th quarter worth about $38,000. 45.82% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Bank Of Montreal Stock Down 2.1%

Shares of BMO opened at $174.49 on Thursday. Bank Of Montreal has a 52-week low of $109.64 and a 52-week high of $179.33. The company has a quick ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $163.93 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $148.05. The company has a market capitalization of $122.21 billion, a PE ratio of 18.52, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.00 and a beta of 0.93.

Bank Of Montreal (NYSE:BMO) (TSE:BMO) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 27th. The bank reported $2.68 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.54 by $0.14. Bank Of Montreal had a net margin of 12.60% and a return on equity of 13.04%. The firm had revenue of $7.04 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.98 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.62 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 10.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Bank Of Montreal will post 11.82 EPS for the current year.

Bank Of Montreal Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 26th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, July 30th will be paid a dividend of $1.71 per share. This represents a $6.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.9%. This is a boost from Bank Of Montreal’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.67. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, July 30th. Bank Of Montreal’s payout ratio is presently 50.96%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have commented on BMO. Weiss Ratings cut Bank Of Montreal from a “buy (b+)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a report on Friday, June 12th. Desjardins reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of Bank Of Montreal in a research note on Thursday, May 28th. Zacks Research cut Bank Of Montreal from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, April 27th. Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Bank Of Montreal in a research note on Thursday, May 28th. Finally, Barclays restated an “underweight” rating on shares of Bank Of Montreal in a report on Thursday, May 28th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Bank Of Montreal presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $163.00.

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.