2,516 Shares in Bank of Montreal (NYSE:BMO) Purchased by Checchi Capital Advisers LLC

Checchi Capital Advisers LLC acquired a new position in Bank of Montreal (NYSE:BMO) (TSE:BMO) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 2,516 shares of the bank’s stock, valued at approximately $244,000.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of BMO. IFP Advisors Inc boosted its stake in shares of Bank of Montreal by 179.5% in the fourth quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 313 shares of the bank’s stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 201 shares during the last quarter. Addison Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Bank of Montreal by 282.8% in the 4th quarter. Addison Advisors LLC now owns 333 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 246 shares in the last quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB acquired a new stake in Bank of Montreal during the 3rd quarter worth $45,000. Blue Trust Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Bank of Montreal by 207.8% during the third quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 668 shares of the bank’s stock worth $56,000 after buying an additional 451 shares in the last quarter. Finally, First Horizon Advisors Inc. raised its position in shares of Bank of Montreal by 140.9% in the fourth quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 612 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $59,000 after buying an additional 358 shares during the last quarter. 45.82% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Bank of Montreal Stock Performance

NYSE BMO opened at $103.03 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $75.10 billion, a PE ratio of 14.76, a P/E/G ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 1.09. Bank of Montreal has a twelve month low of $76.98 and a twelve month high of $106.00. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $99.09 and a 200-day simple moving average of $93.82. The company has a current ratio of 0.98, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11.

Bank of Montreal (NYSE:BMO) (TSE:BMO) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, February 25th. The bank reported $3.04 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.68 by $1.36. Bank of Montreal had a net margin of 9.22% and a return on equity of 10.18%. The company had revenue of $9.27 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.58 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.56 earnings per share. Bank of Montreal’s revenue was up 20.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts anticipate that Bank of Montreal will post 7.71 earnings per share for the current year.

Bank of Montreal Cuts Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, May 27th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 29th will be paid a dividend of $1.1094 per share. This represents a $4.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.31%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, April 29th. Bank of Montreal’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 63.18%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price target on shares of Bank of Montreal from $161.00 to $163.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Scotiabank upgraded Bank of Montreal from a “sector perform” rating to a “sector outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, December 6th. CIBC upgraded Bank of Montreal from a “neutral” rating to a “sector outperform” rating in a report on Friday, December 6th. Cibc World Mkts raised Bank of Montreal from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, December 6th. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of Bank of Montreal from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, four have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Bank of Montreal presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $128.40.

About Bank of Montreal

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.