Versant Capital Management Inc Purchases 2,866 Shares of Bank of Montreal (NYSE:BMO)

Versant Capital Management Inc grew its holdings in Bank of Montreal (NYSE:BMO - Free Report) TSE: BMO by 5,407.5% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 2,919 shares of the bank's stock after acquiring an additional 2,866 shares during the quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc's holdings in Bank of Montreal were worth $279,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. IFP Advisors Inc boosted its stake in Bank of Montreal by 179.5% in the 4th quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 313 shares of the bank's stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 201 shares during the period. Addison Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Bank of Montreal by 282.8% during the fourth quarter. Addison Advisors LLC now owns 333 shares of the bank's stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 246 shares during the period. Vision Financial Markets LLC bought a new position in shares of Bank of Montreal during the fourth quarter worth about $39,000. Dunhill Financial LLC bought a new position in shares of Bank of Montreal during the fourth quarter worth about $39,000. Finally, First Horizon Advisors Inc. raised its position in Bank of Montreal by 140.9% in the 4th quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 612 shares of the bank's stock valued at $59,000 after buying an additional 358 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 45.82% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the company. Scotiabank started coverage on Bank of Montreal in a research report on Thursday, May 15th. They set a "sector perform" rating for the company. Royal Bank of Canada increased their target price on shares of Bank of Montreal from $161.00 to $163.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. Cibc World Mkts cut Bank of Montreal from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, April 4th. CIBC restated a "neutral" rating on shares of Bank of Montreal in a report on Tuesday, May 20th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded Bank of Montreal from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, February 28th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Bank of Montreal currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $128.40.

Bank of Montreal Stock Performance

Shares of Bank of Montreal stock traded up $0.50 during trading on Monday, reaching $107.85. The company's stock had a trading volume of 352,700 shares, compared to its average volume of 834,225. The business's 50-day moving average price is $97.18 and its 200-day moving average price is $97.88. Bank of Montreal has a 52 week low of $76.98 and a 52 week high of $108.38. The firm has a market cap of $77.88 billion, a PE ratio of 15.45, a P/E/G ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 1.03. The company has a quick ratio of 0.98, a current ratio of 0.98 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 28th. The bank reported $1.84 EPS for the quarter, hitting analysts' consensus estimates of $1.84. The company had revenue of $6.32 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $8.79 billion. Bank of Montreal had a return on equity of 10.18% and a net margin of 9.22%. Bank of Montreal's revenue was up 8.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $2.59 earnings per share. Equities analysts forecast that Bank of Montreal will post 7.71 earnings per share for the current year.

Bank of Montreal Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, August 26th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, July 30th will be issued a dividend of $1.1801 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, July 30th. This represents a $4.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.38%. This is a boost from Bank of Montreal's previous quarterly dividend of $1.11. Bank of Montreal's payout ratio is 58.75%.

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.