Analysts set price target for Bank of Montreal (NYSE:BMO) at $131.00

Bank of Montreal (NYSE:BMO – Get Free Report) (TSE:BMO) shares have received an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the five research firms that cover the company, MarketBeat reports. One equities analyst has rated the stock with a hold recommendation and four have given the company a buy recommendation. The average 12-month price target among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $131.00.

Several analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on shares of Bank of Montreal in a research note on Thursday, February 22nd. They gave the company a “buy” rating. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Bank of Montreal from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Sunday, March 3rd. Barclays began coverage on Bank of Montreal in a report on Wednesday, March 20th. They gave the company an “overweight” rating. Finally, Desjardins downgraded Bank of Montreal from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday.

Get our latest report on Bank of Montreal

Share price development of Bank of Montreal

BMO shares opened at $89.16 on Wednesday. Bank of Montreal has a 12-month low of $73.98 and a 12-month high of $100.12. The stock has a market cap of $65.02 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.81, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.21 and a beta of 1.13. The company's 50-day simple moving average is $93.73 and its 200-day simple moving average is $92.64. The company has a current ratio of 0.94, a quick ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12.

Bank of Montreal (NYSE:BMO – Get Free Report) (TSE:BMO) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 27. The bank reported earnings per share of $1.90 for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.24 by ($0.34). The company had revenue of $5.68 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst expectations of $6.34 billion. Bank of Montreal had a return on equity of 11.66% and a net margin of 8.25%. As a group, analysts forecast that Bank of Montreal will report earnings per share of $8.21 for the current year.

Bank of Montreal increases dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, August 27th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, July 30th will receive a dividend of $1.125 per share. This is an increase from Bank of Montreal's previous quarterly dividend of $1.12. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, July 30th. This represents an annualized dividend of $4.50 and a yield of 5.05%. Bank of Montreal's payout ratio is currently 74.25%.

Hedge funds comment on the Bank of Montreal

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC bought a new position in shares of Bank of Montreal in the first quarter valued at about $105,000. Cetera Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Bank of Montreal by 171.3% in the first quarter. Cetera Advisors LLC now owns 6,261 shares of the bank's stock valued at $612,000 after purchasing an additional 3,953 shares during the period. Cetera Investment Advisers increased its position in shares of Bank of Montreal by 454.8% in the first quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 17,171 shares of the bank's stock valued at $1,677,000 after purchasing an additional 14,076 shares in the last quarter. Brown Shipley & Co Ltd bought a new stake in Bank of Montreal in the first quarter valued at $160,000. Finally, Bank of Nova Scotia Trust Co. increased its position in Bank of Montreal by 0.8% in the first quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia Trust Co. now owns 467,380 shares of the bank's stock worth $45,654,000 after purchasing an additional 3,588 shares in the last quarter. 45.82% of the shares are owned by institutional investors.

Bank of Montreal Company Profile

(Get free report

Bank of Montreal provides diversified financial services primarily in North America. It operates through Canadian P&C, US P&C, BMO Wealth Management and BMO Capital Markets segments. The company's retail banking products and services include deposits, mortgages, home loans, consumer loans, small business loans, credit cards, cash management, financial and investment advisory services and other banking services. Commercial banking products and services include various financing options as well as treasury and payment solutions and risk management products.

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