Value Partners Investments Inc. Sells 156,018 Shares of Bank of Montreal (NYSE:BMO)

Value Partners Investments Inc. reduced its stake in shares of Bank of Montreal (NYSE:BMO - Free Report) TSE: BMO by 20.2% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 616,276 shares of the bank's stock after selling 156,018 shares during the quarter. Bank of Montreal accounts for 4.7% of Value Partners Investments Inc.'s portfolio, making the stock its 13th largest position. Value Partners Investments Inc. owned about 0.08% of Bank of Montreal worth $57,154,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. VAUGHAN & Co SECURITIES INC. boosted its holdings in shares of Bank of Montreal by 32.6% in the 4th quarter. VAUGHAN & Co SECURITIES INC. now owns 8,082 shares of the bank's stock worth $800,000 after acquiring an additional 1,988 shares in the last quarter. Harbour Trust & Investment Management Co acquired a new position in Bank of Montreal in the fourth quarter worth $646,000. DORCHESTER WEALTH MANAGEMENT Co grew its holdings in shares of Bank of Montreal by 1.9% during the fourth quarter. DORCHESTER WEALTH MANAGEMENT Co now owns 186,750 shares of the bank's stock worth $18,386,000 after purchasing an additional 3,489 shares during the last quarter. Addenda Capital Inc. increased its stake in shares of Bank of Montreal by 14.0% in the fourth quarter. Addenda Capital Inc. now owns 848,655 shares of the bank's stock valued at $83,966,000 after buying an additional 104,490 shares in the last quarter. Finally, UMB Bank n.a. raised its holdings in shares of Bank of Montreal by 1.7% in the fourth quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 20,373 shares of the bank's stock valued at $2,016,000 after buying an additional 339 shares during the last quarter. 45.82% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

BMO has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Bank of America raised shares of Bank of Montreal from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, December 18th. Barclays initiated coverage on Bank of Montreal in a research note on Wednesday, March 20th. They issued an "overweight" rating for the company. National Bank Financial raised Bank of Montreal from a "sector perform" rating to an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 20th. StockNews.com upgraded Bank of Montreal from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Sunday, March 3rd. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on shares of Bank of Montreal in a research report on Thursday, February 22nd. They set a "buy" rating on the stock. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $131.00.

Bank of Montreal Trading Down 2.8 %

BMO traded down $2.79 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $95.57. 962,389 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 675,964. The company's fifty day moving average price is $94.26 and its 200-day moving average price is $89.39. The firm has a market capitalization of $69.69 billion, a PE ratio of 18.24, a P/E/G ratio of 1.88 and a beta of 1.13. Bank of Montreal has a fifty-two week low of $73.98 and a fifty-two week high of $100.12. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12, a quick ratio of 0.94 and a current ratio of 0.94.

Bank of Montreal (NYSE:BMO - Get Free Report) TSE: BMO last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 27th. The bank reported $1.90 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $2.24 by ($0.34). The company had revenue of $5.68 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.34 billion. Bank of Montreal had a return on equity of 11.89% and a net margin of 7.40%. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Bank of Montreal will post 8.94 EPS for the current year.

Bank of Montreal Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, May 28th. Investors of record on Monday, April 29th will be given a $1.1172 dividend. This represents a $4.47 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.68%. This is an increase from Bank of Montreal's previous quarterly dividend of $1.11. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 26th. Bank of Montreal's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 62.02%.

Bank of Montreal 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.