Bank of Montreal (NYSE:BMO) Shares Purchased by Acadian Asset Management LLC

Acadian Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in Bank of Montreal (NYSE:BMO) (TSE:BMO) by 42,247.6% in the 2nd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 17,786 shares of the bank’s stock after purchasing an additional 17,744 shares during the period. Acadian Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Bank of Montreal were worth $1,490,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC grew its position in Bank of Montreal by 2.1% in the fourth quarter. Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC now owns 5,739 shares of the bank’s stock worth $568,000 after acquiring an additional 116 shares during the period. Signaturefd LLC grew its position in Bank of Montreal by 1.5% in the second quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 8,581 shares of the bank’s stock worth $720,000 after acquiring an additional 123 shares during the period. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC grew its position in Bank of Montreal by 39.0% in the fourth quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 463 shares of the bank’s stock worth $46,000 after acquiring an additional 130 shares during the period. IAG Wealth Partners LLC grew its position in Bank of Montreal by 28.0% in the first quarter. IAG Wealth Partners LLC now owns 635 shares of the bank’s stock worth $62,000 after acquiring an additional 139 shares during the period. Finally, Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC grew its position in Bank of Montreal by 4.4% in the second quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 3,580 shares of the bank’s stock worth $300,000 after acquiring an additional 151 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 45.82% of the company’s stock.

Bank of Montreal Stock Up 0.5 %

Bank of Montreal stock opened at $85.56 on Monday. 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 0.98. The stock has a market cap of $62.40 billion, a PE ratio of 14.21, a P/E/G ratio of 2.32 and a beta of 1.11. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $84.53 and its two-hundred day moving average is $88.90.

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

Bank of Montreal Cuts Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, November 26th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, October 30th will be given a dividend of $1.123 per share. This represents a $4.49 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.25%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, October 30th. Bank of Montreal’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 76.25%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts recently weighed in on the company. UBS Group assumed coverage on Bank of Montreal in a research report on Tuesday, July 2nd. They issued a “neutral” rating for the company. Jefferies Financial Group lowered Bank of Montreal from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 27th. Barclays lowered their price target on Bank of Montreal from $132.00 to $126.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, August 28th. Bank of America lowered Bank of Montreal from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and lowered their price target for the stock from $134.00 to $117.00 in a research report on Wednesday, August 28th. Finally, TD Securities lowered Bank of Montreal from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 27th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $119.75.

About Bank of Montreal

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.