Van ECK Associates Corp Purchases 20,599 Shares of Bank of Montreal (NYSE:BMO)

Van ECK Associates Corp increased its position in shares of Bank of Montreal (NYSE:BMO) (TSE:BMO) by 19.0% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 128,969 shares of the bank’s stock after purchasing an additional 20,599 shares during the period. Van ECK Associates Corp’s holdings in Bank of Montreal were worth $12,597,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Principal Securities Inc. acquired a new stake in Bank of Montreal in the 4th quarter valued at $33,000. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. boosted its stake in Bank of Montreal by 3,375.0% in the fourth quarter. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. now owns 417 shares of the bank’s stock worth $41,000 after purchasing an additional 405 shares in the last quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC acquired a new position in Bank of Montreal in the fourth quarter worth $44,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Bank of Montreal by 39.0% in the fourth quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 463 shares of the bank’s stock worth $46,000 after purchasing an additional 130 shares in the last quarter. Finally, IAG Wealth Partners LLC boosted its stake in Bank of Montreal by 117.5% in the fourth quarter. IAG Wealth Partners LLC now owns 496 shares of the bank’s stock worth $49,000 after purchasing an additional 268 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 45.82% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have commented on BMO. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered Bank of Montreal from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and reduced their price objective for the stock from $137.00 to $124.00 in a research note on Monday, June 3rd. UBS Group began coverage on Bank of Montreal in a research note on Tuesday. They issued a “neutral” rating on the stock. Barclays assumed coverage on Bank of Montreal in a research note on Wednesday, March 20th. They issued an “overweight” rating on the stock. Finally, Desjardins lowered Bank of Montreal from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 29th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Bank of Montreal has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $127.50.

Bank of Montreal Trading Down 0.9 %

NYSE BMO traded down $0.77 on Friday, reaching $84.20. The company had a trading volume of 141,851 shares, compared to its average volume of 755,735. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $88.86 and its 200-day moving average is $92.76. The stock has a market cap of $61.41 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.00, a PEG ratio of 2.10 and a beta of 1.12. The company has a quick ratio of 0.99, a current ratio of 0.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12. Bank of Montreal has a 52 week low of $73.98 and a 52 week high of $100.12.

Bank of Montreal (NYSE:BMO) (TSE:BMO) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 29th. The bank reported $1.91 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.01 by ($0.10). The company had revenue of $5.88 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.96 billion. Bank of Montreal had a net margin of 8.25% and a return on equity of 11.60%. Equities analysts predict that Bank of Montreal will post 7.91 earnings per share for the current year.

Bank of Montreal Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, August 27th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, July 30th will be issued a $1.125 dividend. This is an increase from Bank of Montreal’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.12. This represents a $4.50 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.34%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, July 30th. Bank of Montreal’s dividend payout ratio is 74.25%.

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.