Bank of Montreal (NYSE:BMO) Given Consensus Rating of "Moderate Buy" by Analysts

Shares of Bank of Montreal (NYSE:BMO - Get Free Report) TSE: BMO have received an average rating of "Moderate Buy" from the twelve ratings firms that are covering the stock, MarketBeat reports. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, four have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating on the company. The average 12-month price target among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $122.40.

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on BMO. Royal Bank of Canada restated a "sector perform" rating and issued a $133.00 price objective (up from $106.00) on shares of Bank of Montreal in a research note on Friday, December 6th. Cibc World Mkts upgraded shares of Bank of Montreal from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Friday, December 6th. StockNews.com upgraded Bank of Montreal from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, December 9th. Scotiabank upgraded Bank of Montreal from a "sector perform" rating to a "sector outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, December 6th. Finally, Bank of America downgraded Bank of Montreal from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and dropped their price target for the stock from $134.00 to $117.00 in a research report on Wednesday, August 28th.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of BMO. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL bought a new position in Bank of Montreal during the second quarter worth about $34,000. Rothschild Investment LLC acquired a new position in shares of Bank of Montreal in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $40,000. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB bought a new position in shares of Bank of Montreal during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $45,000. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in Bank of Montreal by 244.1% in the 3rd quarter. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 554 shares of the bank's stock valued at $50,000 after buying an additional 393 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. grew its position in Bank of Montreal by 207.8% in the third quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 668 shares of the bank's stock valued at $56,000 after acquiring an additional 451 shares during the period. 45.82% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Bank of Montreal Stock Performance

BMO traded down $0.28 on Friday, hitting $99.02. The company had a trading volume of 401,132 shares, compared to its average volume of 890,818. Bank of Montreal has a 1-year low of $76.98 and a 1-year high of $104.63. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11, a current ratio of 0.98 and a quick ratio of 0.98. The company's fifty day moving average price is $94.24 and its 200 day moving average price is $88.58. The stock has a market cap of $72.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.19, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 1.10.

Bank of Montreal Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, February 26th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, January 30th will be issued a dividend of $1.1329 per share. This represents a $4.53 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.58%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, January 30th. This is a positive change from Bank of Montreal's previous quarterly dividend of $1.12. Bank of Montreal's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 67.34%.

Bank of Montreal Company 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.