Bank of Montreal (TSE:BMO) Reaches New 12-Month High - Time to Buy?

Key Points

• Bank of Montreal shares hit a new 52-week high, trading at C$176.16, reflecting strong investor interest with over 544,000 shares exchanged.
• Several analysts have recently revised their ratings and price targets for the stock, with Canaccord Genuity increasing theirs from C$180.00 to C$185.00 and maintaining a "buy" rating.
• The bank announced a dividend increase, raising the quarterly payout to $1.63, which gives an annualized dividend yield of 3.7%.

Shares of Bank of Montreal (TSE:BMO - Get Free Report) NYSE: BMO reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Thursday . The stock traded as high as C$176.18 and last traded at C$176.16, with a volume of 544286 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at C$175.11.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

BMO has been the subject of several analyst reports. CIBC raised shares of Bank of Montreal from a "neutral" rating to an "outperform" rating and lifted their price objective for the company from C$173.00 to C$180.00 in a research note on Friday, September 5th. Cibc World Mkts raised shares of Bank of Montreal from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Friday, September 5th. National Bankshares boosted their target price on shares of Bank of Montreal from C$161.00 to C$173.00 in a research report on Wednesday, August 27th. Desjardins boosted their price objective on shares of Bank of Montreal from C$156.00 to C$165.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 27th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price objective on shares of Bank of Montreal from C$164.00 to C$173.00 in a report on Wednesday, August 27th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have given a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of C$167.42.

Bank of Montreal Price Performance

The firm has a market cap of C$127.95 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.65, a PEG ratio of 0.71 and a beta of 1.25. The stock's 50 day moving average is C$160.83 and its two-hundred day moving average is C$147.37.

Bank of Montreal Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, August 26th. Investors of record on Tuesday, August 26th were paid a $1.63 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, July 30th. This is an increase from Bank of Montreal's previous quarterly dividend of $1.59. This represents a $6.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.7%. Bank of Montreal's payout ratio is presently 55.74%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Alan Tannenbaum sold 9,824 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of C$175.12, for a total value of C$1,720,408.35. 0.03% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Bank of Montreal Company Profile

Bank of Montreal is a diversified financial-services provider based in North America, operating four business segments: Canadian personal and commercial banking, U.S. P&C banking, wealth management, and capital markets.