Brokerages Set Bank Of Montreal (NYSE:BMO) PT at $163.00

Bank Of Montreal (NYSE:BMO) (TSE:BMO) has earned a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the eleven ratings firms that are presently covering the firm, MarketBeat.com reports. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, four have issued a buy recommendation and one has given a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 1 year price objective among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $163.00.

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on BMO shares. Raymond James Financial upgraded Bank Of Montreal from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday. TD Securities raised Bank Of Montreal from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 27th. Scotiabank restated a “sector perform” rating on shares of Bank Of Montreal in a research report on Friday, January 9th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Bank Of Montreal in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Bank Of Montreal from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Sunday, February 8th.

Bank Of Montreal Stock Up 0.6%

Shares of NYSE BMO opened at $141.01 on Friday. Bank Of Montreal has a 12-month low of $85.40 and a 12-month high of $146.35. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $134.59 and its 200 day simple moving average is $127.22. The company has a quick ratio of 1.00, a current ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11. The company has a market cap of $99.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.28, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.15 and a beta of 0.94.

Bank Of Montreal (NYSE:BMO) (TSE:BMO) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, December 4th. The bank reported $2.36 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.16 by $0.20. The company had revenue of $6.67 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.51 billion. Bank Of Montreal had a net margin of 11.13% and a return on equity of 11.76%. The company’s revenue was up 5.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.90 earnings per share. On average, research analysts expect that Bank Of Montreal will post 7.71 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Bank Of Montreal Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, February 26th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 30th will be given a $1.67 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 30th. This represents a $6.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.7%. This is an increase from Bank Of Montreal’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.63. Bank Of Montreal’s dividend payout ratio is 59.68%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Bank Of Montreal

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Code Waechter LLC raised its position in shares of Bank Of Montreal by 1.7% in the 4th quarter. Code Waechter LLC now owns 4,486 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $582,000 after acquiring an additional 75 shares during the period. Larson Financial Group LLC raised its holdings in Bank Of Montreal by 33.2% in the fourth quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 317 shares of the bank’s stock worth $41,000 after purchasing an additional 79 shares during the period. Naples Global Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Bank Of Montreal by 0.5% during the fourth quarter. Naples Global Advisors LLC now owns 17,780 shares of the bank’s stock worth $2,308,000 after purchasing an additional 80 shares in the last quarter. Allworth Financial LP grew its holdings in shares of Bank Of Montreal by 4.6% in the 3rd quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 2,121 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $276,000 after buying an additional 94 shares during the period. Finally, Choreo LLC increased its position in shares of Bank Of Montreal by 3.6% in the 3rd quarter. Choreo LLC now owns 2,735 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $356,000 after buying an additional 95 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 45.82% of the company’s stock.

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.