Bank Of Montreal (NYSE:BMO) Shares Sold by Citigroup Inc.

Citigroup Inc. reduced its stake in shares of Bank Of Montreal (NYSE:BMO - Free Report) TSE: BMO by 14.7% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 231,752 shares of the bank's stock after selling 39,942 shares during the period. Citigroup Inc.'s holdings in Bank Of Montreal were worth $22,128,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System boosted its position in shares of Bank Of Montreal by 58.7% during the 1st quarter. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System now owns 68,377 shares of the bank's stock worth $6,528,000 after purchasing an additional 25,284 shares in the last quarter. CenterBook Partners LP purchased a new stake in shares of Bank Of Montreal during the 1st quarter worth $1,401,000. Deutsche Bank AG boosted its position in shares of Bank Of Montreal by 6.2% during the 1st quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 1,079,549 shares of the bank's stock worth $103,108,000 after purchasing an additional 62,890 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of Bank Of Montreal by 1.4% during the 1st quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,941,007 shares of the bank's stock worth $185,329,000 after purchasing an additional 27,291 shares in the last quarter. Finally, ASR Vermogensbeheer N.V. purchased a new stake in shares of Bank Of Montreal in the 1st quarter worth about $2,278,000. 45.82% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently commented on BMO shares. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Bank Of Montreal from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, August 9th. National Bankshares reiterated an "outperform" rating on shares of Bank Of Montreal in a research report on Friday. CIBC reiterated a "neutral" rating on shares of Bank Of Montreal in a research report on Tuesday, May 20th. Barclays lowered shares of Bank Of Montreal from an "overweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Monday, June 9th. Finally, Scotiabank started coverage on shares of Bank Of Montreal in a research report on Thursday, May 15th. They issued a "sector perform" rating on the stock. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $129.50.

Bank Of Montreal Price Performance

BMO stock traded down $0.74 during trading on Friday, hitting $113.43. The stock had a trading volume of 422,441 shares, compared to its average volume of 815,436. The company's 50 day moving average price is $111.27 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $103.01. Bank Of Montreal has a 1-year low of $81.13 and a 1-year high of $115.66. The stock has a market cap of $81.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.71, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.25 and a beta of 1.07. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a current ratio of 1.00.

Bank Of Montreal (NYSE:BMO - Get Free Report) TSE: BMO last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, May 28th. The bank reported $1.84 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $1.84. Bank Of Montreal had a net margin of 10.25% and a return on equity of 10.15%. The firm had revenue of $6.32 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.79 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.59 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 8.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Bank Of Montreal will post 7.71 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Bank Of Montreal Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, August 26th. Investors of record on Wednesday, July 30th will be paid a $1.1801 dividend. This represents a $4.72 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, July 30th. This is a positive change from Bank Of Montreal's previous quarterly dividend of $1.11. Bank Of Montreal's dividend payout ratio is presently 62.13%.

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.