Bank of Montreal (NYSE:BMO) Receives Consensus Recommendation of “Hold” from Analysts

Bank of Montreal (NYSE:BMO) (TSE:BMO) has earned a consensus rating of “Hold” from the ten ratings firms that are presently covering the stock, MarketBeat reports. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and two have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1 year price objective among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $119.75.

Several analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. UBS Group assumed coverage on shares of Bank of Montreal in a research report on Tuesday, July 2nd. They set a “neutral” rating for the company. Barclays decreased their price objective on shares of Bank of Montreal from $132.00 to $126.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, August 28th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut Bank of Montreal from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and cut their target price for the stock from $137.00 to $124.00 in a research report on Monday, June 3rd. Bank of America downgraded Bank of Montreal from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and reduced their target price for the company from $134.00 to $117.00 in a report on Wednesday, August 28th. Finally, TD Securities downgraded Bank of Montreal from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 27th.

Bank of Montreal Stock Down 0.1 %

Shares of NYSE BMO opened at $82.96 on Friday. The business has a 50-day moving average of $84.56 and a two-hundred day moving average of $89.35. The company has a market capitalization of $60.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.78, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.30 and a beta of 1.11. Bank of Montreal has a 1 year low of $73.98 and a 1 year high of $100.12. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13, a current ratio of 0.98 and a quick ratio of 0.99.

Bank of Montreal (NYSE:BMO) (TSE:BMO) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, August 27th. The bank reported $2.64 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.76 by ($0.12). The business had revenue of $8.21 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $8.25 billion. Bank of Montreal had a return on equity of 11.23% and a net margin of 8.50%. Bank of Montreal’s revenue for the quarter was up .2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $2.08 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that Bank of Montreal will post 8.06 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Bank of Montreal Cuts Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, November 26th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, October 30th will be paid a $1.123 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, October 30th. This represents a $4.49 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.41%. Bank of Montreal’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 74.58%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Bank of Montreal

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in Bank of Montreal by 3.2% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 28,073,185 shares of the bank’s stock worth $2,777,561,000 after buying an additional 881,992 shares during the last quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC raised its holdings in Bank of Montreal by 72.6% during the fourth quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 32,603 shares of the bank’s stock worth $3,226,000 after purchasing an additional 13,718 shares in the last quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia Trust Co. lifted its position in Bank of Montreal by 3.3% in the fourth quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia Trust Co. now owns 463,792 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $45,888,000 after purchasing an additional 14,735 shares during the period. Intech Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in Bank of Montreal in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $3,997,000. Finally, Gulf International Bank UK Ltd increased its position in Bank of Montreal by 7.9% during the 1st quarter. Gulf International Bank UK Ltd now owns 4,535 shares of the bank’s stock worth $442,000 after purchasing an additional 332 shares during the period. 45.82% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.