Value Partners Investments Inc. Sells 704,270 Shares of Bank of Montreal (NYSE:BMO)

Value Partners Investments Inc. cut its stake in Bank of Montreal (NYSE:BMO - Free Report) TSE: BMO by 92.6% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 56,254 shares of the bank's stock after selling 704,270 shares during the quarter. Bank of Montreal accounts for 0.2% of Value Partners Investments Inc.'s holdings, making the stock its 10th biggest position. Value Partners Investments Inc.'s holdings in Bank of Montreal were worth $5,459,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. BNP Paribas Financial Markets raised its holdings in Bank of Montreal by 47.9% in the 3rd quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 4,057 shares of the bank's stock valued at $366,000 after acquiring an additional 1,314 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its position in Bank of Montreal by 80.0% during the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 125,572 shares of the bank's stock valued at $11,344,000 after purchasing an additional 55,823 shares during the period. Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC boosted its holdings in Bank of Montreal by 4.5% during the 3rd quarter. Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC now owns 4,771 shares of the bank's stock valued at $430,000 after acquiring an additional 204 shares during the period. Barclays PLC increased its stake in Bank of Montreal by 70.8% in the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 5,923 shares of the bank's stock worth $534,000 after purchasing an additional 2,455 shares during the period. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in Bank of Montreal by 10.2% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 3,321,849 shares of the bank's stock valued at $303,130,000 after purchasing an additional 307,466 shares during the last quarter. 45.82% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Bank of Montreal Trading Up 0.6 %

NYSE BMO traded up $0.55 during trading on Friday, hitting $93.39. The stock had a trading volume of 439,280 shares, compared to its average volume of 861,549. The stock has a market capitalization of $67.89 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.38, a P/E/G ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 0.95. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $96.90 and a 200 day simple moving average of $96.20. Bank of Montreal has a one year low of $76.98 and a one year high of $106.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a current ratio of 0.98.

Bank of Montreal (NYSE:BMO - Get Free Report) TSE: BMO last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 25th. The bank reported $3.04 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.68 by $1.36. Bank of Montreal had a return on equity of 10.18% and a net margin of 9.22%. The business had revenue of $9.27 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.58 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $2.56 earnings per share. The company's revenue was up 20.8% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts predict that Bank of Montreal will post 7.71 earnings per share for the current year.

Bank of Montreal Cuts Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, May 27th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, April 29th will be issued a $1.1094 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, April 29th. This represents a $4.44 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.75%. Bank of Montreal's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 57.35%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms recently commented on BMO. CIBC lowered shares of Bank of Montreal from a "sector outperform" rating to a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, April 4th. Cibc World Mkts cut Bank of Montreal from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, April 4th. StockNews.com raised Bank of Montreal from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, February 28th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on Bank of Montreal from $161.00 to $163.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $128.40.

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.