Bank of Montreal (NYSE:BMO) Shares Purchased by Ritholtz Wealth Management

Ritholtz Wealth Management increased its stake in shares of Bank of Montreal (NYSE:BMO) (TSE:BMO) by 24.0% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 14,472 shares of the bank’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,797 shares during the period. Ritholtz Wealth Management’s holdings in Bank of Montreal were worth $1,405,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of BMO. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL acquired a new position in shares of Bank of Montreal during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $34,000. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB acquired a new position in shares of Bank of Montreal during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $45,000. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. grew its stake in Bank of Montreal by 244.1% in the 3rd quarter. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 554 shares of the bank’s stock worth $50,000 after acquiring an additional 393 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc. grew its stake in Bank of Montreal by 207.8% in the 3rd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 668 shares of the bank’s stock worth $56,000 after acquiring an additional 451 shares during the period. Finally, Farther Finance Advisors LLC grew its stake in Bank of Montreal by 44.9% in the 3rd quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 1,103 shares of the bank’s stock worth $99,000 after acquiring an additional 342 shares during the period. 45.82% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have commented on the stock. Scotiabank raised shares of Bank of Montreal from a “sector perform” rating to a “sector outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, December 6th. Royal Bank of Canada raised shares of Bank of Montreal from a “sector perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $133.00 to $161.00 in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. StockNews.com cut shares of Bank of Montreal from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. Cibc World Mkts raised shares of Bank of Montreal from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, December 6th. Finally, CIBC raised shares of Bank of Montreal from a “neutral” rating to a “sector outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, December 6th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, four have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $128.00.

Bank of Montreal Trading Down 0.2 %

BMO stock opened at $98.99 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $72.23 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.18, a PEG ratio of 1.37 and a beta of 1.09. The company has a quick ratio of 0.98, a current ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $96.75 and a 200-day simple moving average of $90.67. Bank of Montreal has a 52 week low of $76.98 and a 52 week high of $104.63.

Bank of Montreal Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, February 26th. Investors of record on Thursday, January 30th will be issued a $1.1329 dividend. This is an increase from Bank of Montreal’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.12. This represents a $4.53 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.58%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, January 30th. Bank of Montreal’s dividend payout ratio is currently 65.62%.

Bank of Montreal Company Profile

Bank of Montreal provides diversified financial services primarily in North America. It operates through Canadian P&C, U.S P&C, BMO Wealth Management, and BMO Capital Markets segments. The company’s personal banking products and services include deposits, mortgages, home lending, consumer credit, small business lending, credit cards, cash management, financial and investment advice, and other banking services; and commercial banking products and services comprise various of financing options and treasury and payment solutions, as well as risk management products.