Gulf International Bank UK Ltd Grows Position in Bank of Montreal (NYSE:BMO)

Gulf International Bank UK Ltd raised its holdings in Bank of Montreal (NYSE:BMO) (TSE:BMO) by 6.9% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 4,847 shares of the bank’s stock after acquiring an additional 312 shares during the period. Gulf International Bank UK Ltd’s holdings in Bank of Montreal were worth $406,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Global Retirement Partners LLC grew 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 acquiring an additional 337 shares during the last quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp grew its position in Bank of Montreal by 6.9% during the 4th quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 2,599 shares of the bank’s stock worth $257,000 after acquiring an additional 168 shares during the last quarter. DAVENPORT & Co LLC bought a new position in Bank of Montreal during the 4th quarter worth approximately $223,000. Harbour Trust & Investment Management Co bought a new position in Bank of Montreal during the 4th quarter worth approximately $646,000. Finally, VAUGHAN & Co SECURITIES INC. grew its position in Bank of Montreal by 32.6% during the 4th quarter. VAUGHAN & Co SECURITIES INC. now owns 8,082 shares of the bank’s stock worth $800,000 after acquiring an additional 1,988 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 45.82% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. UBS Group assumed coverage on Bank of Montreal in a research report on Tuesday, July 2nd. They set a “neutral” rating on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered Bank of Montreal from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and cut their price objective for the stock from $137.00 to $124.00 in a research report on Monday, June 3rd. Desjardins lowered Bank of Montreal from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 29th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada lowered Bank of Montreal from an “outperform” rating to a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 30th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $127.50.

Bank of Montreal Stock Performance

NYSE:BMO traded up $0.68 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $80.89. 155,167 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 842,309. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $85.00 and its 200-day moving average price is $90.77. Bank of Montreal has a one year low of $73.98 and a one year high of $100.12. The company has a quick ratio of 0.99, a current ratio of 0.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12. The firm has a market cap of $58.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.42, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.04 and a beta of 1.12.

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

Bank of Montreal Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, August 27th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, July 30th will be paid a $1.125 dividend. This is a positive change from Bank of Montreal’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.12. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, July 30th. This represents a $4.50 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.56%. Bank of Montreal’s dividend payout ratio is 75.25%.

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.