Stevens Capital Management LP Invests $258,000 in Bank of Montreal (NYSE:BMO)

Stevens Capital Management LP purchased a new position in shares of Bank of Montreal (NYSE:BMO) (TSE:BMO) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 2,604 shares of the bank’s stock, valued at approximately $258,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Bank of Montreal by 192.1% during the 3rd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 333 shares of the bank’s stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 219 shares during the last quarter. Compagnie Lombard Odier SCmA purchased a new stake in Bank of Montreal during the 3rd quarter worth about $29,000. Stonehage Fleming Financial Services Holdings Ltd purchased a new stake in Bank of Montreal during the 3rd quarter worth about $33,000. Crewe Advisors LLC increased its position in Bank of Montreal by 63.5% during the 3rd quarter. Crewe Advisors LLC now owns 515 shares of the bank’s stock worth $43,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Global Retirement Partners LLC increased its position in Bank of Montreal by 177.4% during the 4th quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 527 shares of the bank’s stock worth $50,000 after purchasing an additional 337 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 45.82% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts recently commented on the company. Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on Bank of Montreal in a research report on Thursday, February 22nd. They set a “buy” rating for the company. StockNews.com upgraded Bank of Montreal from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Sunday, March 3rd. Finally, Barclays assumed coverage on Bank of Montreal in a research report on Wednesday, March 20th. They set an “overweight” rating for the company. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Bank of Montreal has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $131.00.

Bank of Montreal Trading Down 2.0 %

BMO traded down $1.82 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $90.90. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 3,961,611 shares, compared to its average volume of 740,200. The company has a current ratio of 0.94, a quick ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12. The firm has a market cap of $66.29 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.35, a PEG ratio of 1.78 and a beta of 1.13. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $94.23 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $90.09. 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 issued its earnings results on Tuesday, February 27th. The bank reported $1.90 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.24 by ($0.34). Bank of Montreal had a return on equity of 11.89% and a net margin of 7.40%. The firm had revenue of $5.68 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.34 billion. On average, research analysts anticipate that Bank of Montreal will post 8.94 earnings per share for the current year.

Bank of Montreal Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, May 28th. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 29th will be issued a dividend of $1.1172 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 26th. This represents a $4.47 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.92%. This is a boost from Bank of Montreal’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.11. Bank of Montreal’s payout ratio is presently 62.02%.

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.