Bank of Montreal (NYSE:BMO) Releases Quarterly Earnings Results

Bank of Montreal (NYSE:BMO - Get Free Report) TSE: BMO released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday. The bank reported $2.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.33 by ($0.08), reports. Bank of Montreal had a return on equity of 12.55% and a net margin of 6.41%. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.39 earnings per share.

Bank of Montreal Trading Down 1.1 %

NYSE BMO opened at $93.88 on Tuesday. Bank of Montreal has a 12 month low of $73.98 and a 12 month high of $100.12. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12, a current ratio of 0.96 and a quick ratio of 0.96. The company has a market capitalization of $68.10 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.46, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 1.15. The company's fifty day moving average price is $95.39 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $87.31.

Bank of Montreal Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, February 27th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, January 30th will be paid a dividend of $1.1137 per share. This represents a $4.45 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.75%. This is an increase from Bank of Montreal's previous quarterly dividend of $1.11. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, January 29th. Bank of Montreal's dividend payout ratio is 103.59%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

BMO has been the subject of several recent research reports. StockNews.com lowered shares of Bank of Montreal from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Saturday. Bank of America upgraded shares of Bank of Montreal from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, December 18th. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on shares of Bank of Montreal in a research note on Thursday, February 22nd. They issued a "buy" rating for the company. Finally, National Bank Financial upgraded shares of Bank of Montreal from a "sector perform" rating to an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 20th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $131.00.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in BMO. Vident Investment Advisory LLC lifted its position in shares of Bank of Montreal by 1.7% in the 1st quarter. Vident Investment Advisory LLC now owns 7,472 shares of the bank's stock worth $877,000 after buying an additional 122 shares during the last quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Bank of Montreal by 0.4% during the 3rd quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. now owns 30,963 shares of the bank's stock worth $2,714,000 after acquiring an additional 131 shares in the last quarter. Rhumbline Advisers increased its stake in Bank of Montreal by 15.3% in the 3rd quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 1,095 shares of the bank's stock worth $92,000 after purchasing an additional 145 shares in the last quarter. Cresset Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Bank of Montreal by 1.9% in the fourth quarter. Cresset Asset Management LLC now owns 9,538 shares of the bank's stock worth $944,000 after buying an additional 182 shares during the period. Finally, Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Bank of Montreal by 3.0% in the first quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. now owns 7,432 shares of the bank's stock worth $877,000 after buying an additional 219 shares during the period. 43.89% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.

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