Guardian Partners Inc. Sells 4,503 Shares of Bank Of Montreal $BMO

Guardian Partners Inc. lessened its position in shares of Bank Of Montreal (NYSE:BMO) (TSE:BMO) by 1.3% in the third quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 338,734 shares of the bank’s stock after selling 4,503 shares during the quarter. Bank Of Montreal accounts for approximately 3.8% of Guardian Partners Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 4th biggest holding. Guardian Partners Inc.’s holdings in Bank Of Montreal were worth $44,261,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp lifted its position in shares of Bank Of Montreal by 18.3% in the 2nd quarter. BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp now owns 739,598 shares of the bank’s stock worth $82,015,000 after purchasing an additional 114,458 shares during the period. Citigroup Inc. increased its position in shares of Bank Of Montreal by 36.6% during the third quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 502,382 shares of the bank’s stock worth $65,479,000 after buying an additional 134,699 shares during the period. Addenda Capital Inc. raised its stake in Bank Of Montreal by 9.5% during the third quarter. Addenda Capital Inc. now owns 734,616 shares of the bank’s stock worth $95,684,000 after buying an additional 63,432 shares during the last quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc raised its stake in Bank Of Montreal by 17.3% during the third quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 7,260,160 shares of the bank’s stock worth $949,441,000 after buying an additional 1,070,546 shares during the last quarter. Finally, JCIC Asset Management Inc. acquired a new position in Bank Of Montreal in the third quarter valued at $7,939,000. Institutional investors own 45.82% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have commented on BMO. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Bank Of Montreal from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Sunday, February 8th. National Bank Financial reissued a “sector perform” rating on shares of Bank Of Montreal in a research note on Wednesday, February 25th. Scotiabank restated a “sector perform” rating on shares of Bank Of Montreal in a research report on Friday, January 9th. Zacks Research raised Bank Of Montreal from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 19th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Bank Of Montreal in a report on Wednesday, February 25th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have assigned a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $163.00.

Bank Of Montreal Trading Down 1.3%

NYSE:BMO opened at $142.17 on Friday. Bank Of Montreal has a 12 month low of $85.40 and a 12 month high of $149.01. The company has a current ratio of 1.02, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11. The stock has a market capitalization of $100.41 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.51, a PEG ratio of 0.98 and a beta of 0.92. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $138.85 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $130.42.

Bank Of Montreal (NYSE:BMO) (TSE:BMO) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 25th. The bank reported $2.51 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.35 by $0.16. The firm had revenue of $7.21 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.73 billion. Bank Of Montreal had a net margin of 11.76% and a return on equity of 12.16%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 6.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $3.04 earnings per share. Analysts expect that Bank Of Montreal will post 7.71 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Bank Of Montreal Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, May 26th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 29th will be issued a $1.67 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 29th. This represents a $6.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.7%. Bank Of Montreal’s dividend payout ratio is presently 56.56%.

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.