Van ECK Associates Corp Buys 9,501 Shares of Bank of Montreal (NYSE:BMO)

Van ECK Associates Corp boosted its holdings in Bank of Montreal (NYSE:BMO - Free Report) TSE: BMO by 9.6% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 108,370 shares of the bank's stock after purchasing an additional 9,501 shares during the quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp's holdings in Bank of Montreal were worth $10,844,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Triasima Portfolio Management inc. grew its stake in Bank of Montreal by 18.9% during the 4th quarter. Triasima Portfolio Management inc. now owns 486,421 shares of the bank's stock worth $48,219,000 after buying an additional 77,285 shares during the last quarter. Intact Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in Bank of Montreal by 12.9% in the 4th quarter. Intact Investment Management Inc. now owns 726,141 shares of the bank's stock valued at $71,852,000 after purchasing an additional 82,900 shares during the last quarter. Pinnacle Financial Partners Inc boosted its stake in Bank of Montreal by 4.2% during the 3rd quarter. Pinnacle Financial Partners Inc now owns 171,717 shares of the bank's stock valued at $14,488,000 after purchasing an additional 6,901 shares during the period. Pacer Advisors Inc. grew its position in Bank of Montreal by 1.9% in the 4th quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 6,622 shares of the bank's stock worth $655,000 after purchasing an additional 126 shares during the last quarter. Finally, 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 purchasing an additional 104,490 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 45.82% of the company's stock.

Bank of Montreal Price Performance

Shares of NYSE BMO traded up $1.34 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $91.23. The company's stock had a trading volume of 469,454 shares, compared to its average volume of 738,645. Bank of Montreal has a one year low of $73.98 and a one year high of $100.12. The company has a market cap of $66.53 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.41, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 1.14. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $93.79 and a 200 day moving average price of $90.39. The company has a current ratio of 0.94, a quick ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12.

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

Bank of Montreal Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, May 28th. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 29th will be paid a dividend of $1.1172 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 26th. This is a positive change from Bank of Montreal's previous quarterly dividend of $1.11. This represents a $4.47 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.90%. Bank of Montreal's dividend payout ratio is currently 41.79%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. Barclays started coverage on Bank of Montreal in a report on Wednesday, March 20th. They issued an "overweight" rating for the company. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Bank of Montreal from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Sunday, March 3rd. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on shares of Bank of Montreal in a report on Thursday, February 22nd. They issued a "buy" rating for the company. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Bank of Montreal presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $131.00.

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.