15,197 Bank Of Montreal $BMO Shares Sold by Guardian Partners Inc.

Guardian Partners Inc. lessened its stake in Bank Of Montreal (NYSE:BMO) (TSE:BMO) by 5.0% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 288,574 shares of the bank’s stock after selling 15,197 shares during the quarter. Bank Of Montreal comprises approximately 4.3% of Guardian Partners Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 4th biggest holding. Guardian Partners Inc.’s holdings in Bank Of Montreal were worth $48,365,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board acquired a new stake in shares of Bank Of Montreal during the 2nd quarter worth $1,281,220,000. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. grew its position in Bank Of Montreal by 0.3% during the third quarter. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. now owns 6,371,237 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $1,057,374,000 after acquiring an additional 20,334 shares during the period. Caisse de depot et placement du Quebec purchased a new stake in Bank Of Montreal during the second quarter valued at about $957,549,000. Bank of Nova Scotia acquired a new stake in Bank Of Montreal during the second quarter worth about $920,002,000. Finally, Legal & General Group Plc acquired a new stake in Bank Of Montreal during the second quarter worth about $744,214,000. 45.82% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on BMO shares. TD Securities restated a “buy” rating on shares of Bank Of Montreal in a report on Wednesday, August 12th. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating on shares of Bank Of Montreal in a report on Thursday, August 27th. Scotiabank reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Bank Of Montreal in a research report on Wednesday, August 26th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods assumed coverage on shares of Bank Of Montreal in a report on Friday, August 21st. They issued an “outperform” rating on the stock. Finally, Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce cut shares of Bank Of Montreal from a “sector outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 18th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $244.00.

Bank Of Montreal Stock Up 1.7%

Bank Of Montreal stock traded up $2.91 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $170.38. 131,904 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 782,281. Bank Of Montreal has a 52-week low of $119.84 and a 52-week high of $187.22. The firm has a market cap of $118.43 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.20, a PEG ratio of 1.00 and a beta of 0.95. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10, a quick ratio of 1.01 and a current ratio of 1.01. The company’s 50-day moving average is $171.87 and its two-hundred day moving average is $167.16.

Bank Of Montreal (NYSE:BMO) (TSE:BMO) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 25th. The bank reported $2.84 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.71 by $0.13. The company had revenue of $7.10 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.94 billion. Bank Of Montreal had a return on equity of 13.60% and a net margin of 11.72%. The firm’s revenue was up 10.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $3.23 earnings per share. On average, analysts predict that Bank Of Montreal will post 10.65 earnings per share for the current year.

Bank Of Montreal Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, November 26th. Stockholders of record on Friday, October 30th will be paid a C$1.71 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 30th. This represents a $6.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.0%. Bank Of Montreal’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 54.18%.

About Bank Of Montreal

Bank of Montreal, operating under the BMO Financial Group brand, is a diversified financial services company headquartered in Toronto, Canada. Founded in 1817, it is one of Canada’s oldest banks and serves individual, business, institutional and government customers.

BMO provides personal banking products such as deposit accounts, mortgages, consumer loans, credit cards and investment services. Its commercial banking operations offer lending, treasury management and other financial solutions to small and medium-sized businesses and larger corporate clients.

Through its wealth management business, BMO provides investment management, financial planning, private banking and brokerage services.