Wealth Alliance Takes Position in Bank of Montreal (NYSE:BMO)

Wealth Alliance purchased a new stake in Bank of Montreal (NYSE:BMO) (TSE:BMO) in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund purchased 2,424 shares of the bank’s stock, valued at approximately $240,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. PCA Investment Advisory Services Inc. purchased a new stake in Bank of Montreal in the 2nd quarter valued at $26,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Bank of Montreal by 192.1% during the 3rd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 333 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 219 shares during the last quarter. Compagnie Lombard Odier SCmA purchased a new stake in shares of Bank of Montreal during the 3rd quarter valued at $29,000. Stonehage Fleming Financial Services Holdings Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Bank of Montreal during the 3rd quarter valued at $33,000. Finally, Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL purchased a new stake in shares of Bank of Montreal during the 1st quarter valued at $36,000. 45.82% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Bank of Montreal Stock Performance

Shares of BMO opened at $90.99 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $66.35 billion, a PE ratio of 17.36, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.75 and a beta of 1.13. The company has a current ratio of 0.94, a quick ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $94.22 and a 200-day moving average price of $89.67. Bank of Montreal has a 12-month low of $73.98 and a 12-month high of $100.12.

Bank of Montreal (NYSE:BMO) (TSE:BMO) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 27th. The bank reported $1.90 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.24 by ($0.34). The business had revenue of $5.68 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.34 billion. Bank of Montreal had a net margin of 7.40% and a return on equity of 11.89%. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Bank of Montreal will post 8.94 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Bank of Montreal Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, May 28th. Investors of record on Monday, April 29th will be issued a dividend of $1.1172 per share. This represents a $4.47 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.91%. This is a boost 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%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on BMO. StockNews.com raised Bank of Montreal from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Sunday, March 3rd. Barclays began coverage on Bank of Montreal in a research report on Wednesday, March 20th. They set an “overweight” rating for the company. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on Bank of Montreal in a research report on Thursday, February 22nd. They set 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 stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Bank of Montreal has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $131.00.

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.