Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank Raises Stock Holdings in Bank of Montreal (NYSE:BMO)

Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank grew its position in shares of Bank of Montreal (NYSE:BMO) (TSE:BMO) by 2.2% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 226,741 shares of the bank’s stock after buying an additional 4,837 shares during the period. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank’s holdings in Bank of Montreal were worth $22,545,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Bank of Montreal by 3.0% in the 1st quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. now owns 7,432 shares of the bank’s stock worth $877,000 after purchasing an additional 219 shares during the last quarter. BlackRock Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Bank of Montreal by 5.5% in the 1st quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 426,005 shares of the bank’s stock worth $50,256,000 after purchasing an additional 22,030 shares during the last quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Bank of Montreal in the 1st quarter worth approximately $225,000. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in Bank of Montreal by 6.1% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 22,478,058 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $2,651,736,000 after acquiring an additional 1,293,280 shares during the period. Finally, USS Investment Management Ltd increased its position in Bank of Montreal by 2.1% in the 1st quarter. USS Investment Management Ltd now owns 145,939 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $17,199,000 after acquiring an additional 3,071 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 45.82% of the company’s stock.

Bank of Montreal Stock Performance

BMO opened at $90.94 on Thursday. 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 quick ratio of 0.94, a current ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12. The firm has a market cap of $66.32 billion, a PE ratio of 17.35, a P/E/G ratio of 1.75 and a beta of 1.13. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $94.24 and a 200-day simple moving average of $89.66.

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 for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.24 by ($0.34). Bank of Montreal had a net margin of 7.40% and a return on equity of 11.89%. The business had revenue of $5.68 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.34 billion. As a group, equities analysts predict that Bank of Montreal will post 8.94 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Bank of Montreal Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, May 28th. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 29th will be given a $1.1172 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 26th. 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. Bank of Montreal’s payout ratio is currently 62.02%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts recently commented on BMO shares. Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on Bank of Montreal in a research report on Thursday, February 22nd. They issued a “buy” rating on the stock. National Bank Financial upgraded Bank of Montreal from a “sector perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 20th. Barclays initiated coverage on Bank of Montreal in a research report on Wednesday, March 20th. They set an “overweight” rating on the stock. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded Bank of Montreal from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Sunday, March 3rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Bank of Montreal presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $131.00.

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.