Waratah Capital Advisors Ltd. Makes New $11.79 Million Investment in Bank Of Montreal $BMO

Waratah Capital Advisors Ltd. bought a new position in shares of Bank Of Montreal (NYSE:BMO) (TSE:BMO) during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund bought 90,548 shares of the bank’s stock, valued at approximately $11,794,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in BMO. True Wealth Design LLC acquired a new position in Bank Of Montreal during the third quarter worth about $28,000. WFA of San Diego LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Bank Of Montreal in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $28,000. Vision Financial Markets LLC increased its stake in Bank Of Montreal by 100.0% in the 2nd quarter. Vision Financial Markets LLC now owns 400 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $44,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. Toth Financial Advisory Corp acquired a new position in Bank Of Montreal during the third quarter worth $52,000. Finally, Smartleaf Asset Management LLC boosted its position in Bank Of Montreal by 107.7% during the third quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 407 shares of the bank’s stock worth $53,000 after purchasing an additional 211 shares in the last quarter. 45.82% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on BMO shares. TD Securities upgraded Bank Of Montreal from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 27th. Scotiabank restated a “sector perform” rating on shares of Bank Of Montreal in a research report on Friday, January 9th. Zacks Research raised shares of Bank Of Montreal from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, February 19th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Bank Of Montreal in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Finally, National Bank Financial downgraded Bank Of Montreal from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, December 1st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have given a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Bank Of Montreal has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $163.00.

Bank Of Montreal Stock Performance

Shares of BMO opened at $142.36 on Wednesday. Bank Of Montreal has a 1 year low of $85.40 and a 1 year high of $147.04. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $136.39 and its 200 day simple moving average is $128.75. The company has a market capitalization of $100.54 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.45, a PEG ratio of 0.99 and a beta of 0.94. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a current ratio of 1.00.

Bank Of Montreal (NYSE:BMO) (TSE:BMO) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, December 4th. The bank reported $2.36 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.16 by $0.20. Bank Of Montreal had a return on equity of 11.76% and a net margin of 11.13%.The company had revenue of $6.67 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.51 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.90 EPS. Bank Of Montreal’s revenue was up 5.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Bank Of Montreal will post 7.71 EPS for the current year.

Bank Of Montreal Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, February 26th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 30th will be paid a $1.67 dividend. This represents a $6.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 30th. This is a positive change from Bank Of Montreal’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.63. Bank Of Montreal’s dividend payout ratio is 59.68%.

Bank Of Montreal Company Profile

Bank of Montreal (NYSE:BMO), commonly known as BMO Financial Group, is one of Canada’s largest and longest-established banks. Founded in Montreal and headquartered in Montreal, Quebec, the bank provides a broad range of financial services to retail, commercial, corporate and institutional clients. BMO is publicly listed in both Canada and the United States and operates under a consolidated financial services model that integrates banking, capital markets, wealth management and asset management activities.

BMO’s core businesses include personal and commercial banking—offering checking and savings accounts, lending, mortgages, and small-business services—alongside wealth management and private banking through its asset and investment management divisions.