Bank Of Montreal (NYSE:BMO) Reaches New 12-Month High - What's Next?

Key Points

• Bank of Montreal shares hit a new 52-week high, trading as high as $179.96 on Monday and last changing hands at $179.33.
• Analysts remain mixed on BMO: the stock has an average Hold rating, with five Buy ratings, seven Hold ratings and one Sell rating, and a consensus price target of $163.00.
• The bank recently raised its quarterly dividend to $1.71 per share from $1.67, and its latest earnings beat expectations with EPS of $2.68 versus $2.54 estimated.

Bank Of Montreal (NYSE:BMO - Get Free Report) TSE: BMO's share price reached a new 52-week high on Monday . The stock traded as high as $179.96 and last traded at $179.33, with a volume of 19446 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $178.96.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on the stock. Desjardins reissued a "hold" rating on shares of Bank Of Montreal in a research report on Thursday, May 28th. Barclays reaffirmed an "underweight" rating on shares of Bank Of Montreal in a report on Thursday, May 28th. Zacks Research lowered shares of Bank Of Montreal from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, April 27th. Scotiabank reissued an "outperform" rating on shares of Bank Of Montreal in a report on Tuesday, June 16th. Finally, Raymond James Financial restated an "outperform" rating on shares of Bank Of Montreal in a research report on Tuesday, May 12th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $163.00.

Bank Of Montreal Stock Down 0.3%

The business has a 50-day moving average price of $165.05 and a 200-day moving average price of $148.73. The stock has a market cap of $124.99 billion, a PE ratio of 18.96, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.00 and a beta of 0.93. The company has a current ratio of 1.02, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11.

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

Bank Of Montreal Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 26th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, July 30th will be paid a dividend of $1.71 per share. This is an increase from Bank Of Montreal's previous quarterly dividend of $1.67. This represents a $6.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, July 30th. Bank Of Montreal's dividend payout ratio is presently 51.06%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in Bank Of Montreal by 2.1% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 33,017,205 shares of the bank's stock worth $4,287,878,000 after buying an additional 673,248 shares in the last quarter. TD Asset Management Inc lifted its position in shares of Bank Of Montreal by 1.5% in the fourth quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 19,372,601 shares of the bank's stock valued at $2,519,180,000 after acquiring an additional 293,575 shares in the last quarter. FIL Ltd lifted its holdings in Bank Of Montreal by 15.2% in the 4th quarter. FIL Ltd now owns 9,445,162 shares of the bank's stock valued at $1,226,622,000 after purchasing an additional 1,245,500 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Bank Of Montreal during the fourth quarter worth about $1,059,320,000. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of Bank Of Montreal by 6.7% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 7,030,219 shares of the bank's stock valued at $932,242,000 after purchasing an additional 442,812 shares in the last quarter. 45.82% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.

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