Vertex Planning Partners LLC Buys New Stake in Bank of Montreal (NYSE:BMO)

Vertex Planning Partners LLC bought a new position in Bank of Montreal (NYSE:BMO - Free Report) TSE: BMO during the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor bought 44,928 shares of the bank's stock, valued at approximately $4,053,000. Bank of Montreal accounts for about 1.0% of Vertex Planning Partners LLC's holdings, making the stock its 23rd biggest holding.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of BMO. Signaturefd LLC grew its position in Bank of Montreal by 1.5% during the 2nd quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 8,581 shares of the bank's stock valued at $720,000 after purchasing an additional 123 shares during the last quarter. Boltwood Capital Management grew its position in Bank of Montreal by 3.1% during the 3rd quarter. Boltwood Capital Management now owns 4,125 shares of the bank's stock valued at $372,000 after purchasing an additional 125 shares during the last quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC grew its position in Bank of Montreal by 4.4% during the 2nd quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 3,580 shares of the bank's stock valued at $300,000 after purchasing an additional 151 shares during the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Bank of Montreal by 34.6% during the 1st quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 623 shares of the bank's stock valued at $56,000 after acquiring an additional 160 shares during the period. Finally, Whittier Trust Co. lifted its stake in Bank of Montreal by 17.9% during the 2nd quarter. Whittier Trust Co. now owns 1,092 shares of the bank's stock valued at $92,000 after acquiring an additional 166 shares during the period. 45.82% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Bank of Montreal Stock Performance

NYSE BMO traded up $1.05 on Tuesday, reaching $94.10. 486,926 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 899,163. Bank of Montreal has a one year low of $76.98 and a one year high of $100.12. The firm has a market capitalization of $68.65 billion, a PE ratio of 14.82, a PEG ratio of 2.39 and a beta of 1.10. The company's 50-day simple moving average is $91.30 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $88.18. The company has a current ratio of 0.98, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13.

Bank of Montreal (NYSE:BMO - Get Free Report) TSE: BMO last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 27th. The bank reported $2.64 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $2.76 by ($0.12). Bank of Montreal had a net margin of 8.50% and a return on equity of 11.23%. The company had revenue of $8.21 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $8.25 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $2.08 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was up .2% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts expect that Bank of Montreal will post 8 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Bank of Montreal Cuts Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, November 26th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, October 30th will be issued a dividend of $1.123 per share. This represents a $4.49 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.77%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, October 30th. Bank of Montreal's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 72.13%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have issued reports on BMO. Bank of America cut shares of Bank of Montreal from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and lowered their target price for the company from $134.00 to $117.00 in a research note on Wednesday, August 28th. Royal Bank of Canada cut shares of Bank of Montreal from an "outperform" rating to a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 30th. Jefferies Financial Group cut shares of Bank of Montreal from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 27th. Scotiabank cut shares of Bank of Montreal from a "sector outperform" rating to a "sector perform" rating and lowered their price objective for the stock from $123.00 to $112.00 in a research note on Wednesday, August 28th. Finally, Barclays lowered their price objective on shares of Bank of Montreal from $132.00 to $126.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, August 28th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $119.75.

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.