The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company Lowers Position in Bank Of Montreal $BMO

by · The Markets Daily

The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company decreased its holdings in shares of Bank Of Montreal (NYSE:BMO – Free Report) (TSE:BMO) by 44.9% during the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 3,349,980 shares of the bank’s stock after selling 2,730,133 shares during the period. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company owned 0.47% of Bank Of Montreal worth $369,304,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Ascent Group LLC boosted its stake in shares of Bank Of Montreal by 3.5% during the second quarter. Ascent Group LLC now owns 2,756 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $305,000 after purchasing an additional 92 shares in the last quarter. Princeton Global Asset Management LLC raised its stake in Bank Of Montreal by 40.0% in the second quarter. Princeton Global Asset Management LLC now owns 350 shares of the bank’s stock worth $39,000 after buying an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. Focus Partners Advisor Solutions LLC lifted its holdings in Bank Of Montreal by 4.5% during the second quarter. Focus Partners Advisor Solutions LLC now owns 2,616 shares of the bank’s stock worth $289,000 after buying an additional 112 shares during the period. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. boosted its position in Bank Of Montreal by 3.7% during the 2nd quarter. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. now owns 3,283 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $363,000 after acquiring an additional 117 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wedbush Securities Inc. boosted its position in Bank Of Montreal by 4.5% during the 2nd quarter. Wedbush Securities Inc. now owns 3,091 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $342,000 after acquiring an additional 132 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 45.82% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

BMO has been the subject of several recent research reports. Scotiabank reissued a “sector perform” rating on shares of Bank Of Montreal in a research report on Wednesday, August 27th. National Bankshares reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Bank Of Montreal in a report on Friday, August 15th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Bank Of Montreal from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, December 6th. Royal Bank Of Canada downgraded shares of Bank Of Montreal from an “outperform” rating to a “sector perform” rating and cut their price objective for the stock from $168.00 to $163.00 in a research report on Friday, October 3rd. Finally, Cowen reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Bank Of Montreal in a research note on Wednesday, August 27th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have given a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $163.00.

Check Out Our Latest Research Report on BMO

Bank Of Montreal Stock Performance

Shares of Bank Of Montreal stock opened at $129.69 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $92.29 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.89, a PEG ratio of 0.92 and a beta of 0.95. The company has a quick ratio of 1.00, a current ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $125.46 and a 200 day moving average price of $118.89. Bank Of Montreal has a 52 week low of $85.40 and a 52 week high of $131.36.

Bank Of Montreal (NYSE:BMO – Get Free Report) (TSE:BMO) last released its earnings results on Thursday, December 4th. The bank reported $2.36 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.16 by $0.20. Bank Of Montreal had a net margin of 11.13% and a return on equity of 11.76%. The company had revenue of $6.67 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.51 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.90 EPS. Bank Of Montreal’s revenue was up 5.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts expect that Bank Of Montreal will post 7.71 EPS for the current year.

Bank Of Montreal Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, February 26th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 30th will be issued a dividend of $1.67 per share. This represents a $6.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.2%. This is a boost from Bank Of Montreal’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.63. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 30th. Bank Of Montreal’s dividend payout ratio is presently 57.35%.

Bank Of Montreal Profile

(Free Report)

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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