Metis Global Partners LLC Acquires 1,402 Shares of Bank of Montreal (NYSE:BMO)

Metis Global Partners LLC increased its position in Bank of Montreal (NYSE:BMO) (TSE:BMO) by 5.4% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 27,184 shares of the bank’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,402 shares during the quarter. Metis Global Partners LLC’s holdings in Bank of Montreal were worth $2,639,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Heck Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Bank of Montreal in the 4th quarter worth about $346,000. Five Oceans Advisors purchased a new stake in Bank of Montreal in the 4th quarter worth about $327,000. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its holdings in Bank of Montreal by 80.0% in the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 125,572 shares of the bank’s stock worth $11,344,000 after acquiring an additional 55,823 shares during the last quarter. Intact Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in Bank of Montreal by 72.9% in the 3rd quarter. Intact Investment Management Inc. now owns 588,209 shares of the bank’s stock worth $53,082,000 after acquiring an additional 248,098 shares during the last quarter. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its holdings in Bank of Montreal by 4.5% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 3,327,465 shares of the bank’s stock worth $300,137,000 after acquiring an additional 144,252 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 45.82% of the company’s stock.

Bank of Montreal Stock Down 0.3 %

Shares of NYSE BMO opened at $102.71 on Friday. Bank of Montreal has a 12 month low of $76.98 and a 12 month high of $106.00. The company has a current ratio of 0.98, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11. The firm has a market capitalization of $74.86 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.71, a PEG ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 1.09. The business has a 50-day moving average of $99.21 and a 200-day moving average of $94.05.

Bank of Montreal (NYSE:BMO) (TSE:BMO) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 25th. The bank reported $3.04 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.68 by $1.36. Bank of Montreal had a return on equity of 10.18% and a net margin of 9.22%. The company had revenue of $9.27 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.58 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $2.56 earnings per share. Bank of Montreal’s revenue was up 20.8% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts expect that Bank of Montreal will post 7.71 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Bank of Montreal Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, May 27th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, April 29th will be issued a dividend of $1.1094 per share. This represents a $4.44 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.32%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 29th. Bank of Montreal’s payout ratio is 56.83%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price objective on Bank of Montreal from $161.00 to $163.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday. StockNews.com raised Bank of Montreal from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday. Cibc World Mkts raised Bank of Montreal from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, December 6th. CIBC raised Bank of Montreal from a “neutral” rating to a “sector outperform” rating in a report on Friday, December 6th. Finally, Scotiabank raised Bank of Montreal from a “sector perform” rating to a “sector outperform” rating in a report on Friday, December 6th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, four have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong 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 $128.40.

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.