Bank of Nova Scotia Trims Stock Position in Bank Of Montreal $BMO

Bank of Nova Scotia cut its holdings in shares of Bank Of Montreal (NYSE:BMO) (TSE:BMO) by 15.6% in the first quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 5,032,483 shares of the bank’s stock after selling 932,886 shares during the quarter. Bank Of Montreal accounts for about 1.1% of Bank of Nova Scotia’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 15th largest holding. Bank of Nova Scotia’s holdings in Bank Of Montreal were worth $681,462,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Bank Of Montreal by 6,300.1% during the 4th quarter. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. now owns 479,492 shares of the bank’s stock worth $62,233,000 after buying an additional 472,000 shares during the period. Andra AP fonden acquired a new position in Bank Of Montreal in the 1st quarter valued at about $3,979,000. Mn Services Vermogensbeheer B.V. raised its holdings in Bank Of Montreal by 16.3% in the 4th quarter. Mn Services Vermogensbeheer B.V. now owns 165,213 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $21,484,000 after acquiring an additional 23,113 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in Bank Of Montreal by 2.1% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 33,017,205 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $4,287,878,000 after acquiring an additional 673,248 shares during the period. Finally, Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. lifted its position in Bank Of Montreal by 2,127.4% during the fourth quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 349,694 shares of the bank’s stock worth $45,387,000 after acquiring an additional 333,994 shares during the last quarter. 45.82% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on BMO shares. Barclays restated an “underweight” rating on shares of Bank Of Montreal in a report on Thursday, May 28th. Desjardins reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Bank Of Montreal in a report on Thursday, May 28th. TD Securities reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Bank Of Montreal in a report on Thursday, May 28th. Weiss Ratings upgraded Bank Of Montreal from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b+)” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 8th. Finally, Scotiabank reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Bank Of Montreal in a research report on Tuesday, June 16th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Bank Of Montreal has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $163.00.

Bank Of Montreal Trading Down 1.4%

Shares of NYSE:BMO opened at $176.57 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $123.67 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.74, a P/E/G ratio of 1.00 and a beta of 0.93. Bank Of Montreal has a 1 year low of $109.64 and a 1 year high of $184.21. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11, a current ratio of 1.02 and a quick ratio of 1.02. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $170.01 and its 200 day simple moving average is $151.86.

Bank Of Montreal (NYSE:BMO) (TSE:BMO) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 27th. The bank reported $2.68 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.54 by $0.14. The firm had revenue of $7.04 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.98 billion. Bank Of Montreal had a return on equity of 13.04% and a net margin of 12.60%.The company’s quarterly revenue was up 10.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $2.62 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that Bank Of Montreal will post 11.82 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Bank Of Montreal Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 26th. Investors of record on Thursday, July 30th will be paid a $1.71 dividend. This represents a $6.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.9%. This is a boost from Bank Of Montreal’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.67. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, July 30th. Bank Of Montreal’s payout ratio is presently 50.96%.

About Bank Of Montreal

Bank of Montreal (NYSE:BMO), commonly known as BMO Financial Group, is one of Canada’s largest and longest-established banks. Founded in Montreal and headquartered in Montreal, Quebec, the bank provides a broad range of financial services to retail, commercial, corporate and institutional clients. BMO is publicly listed in both Canada and the United States and operates under a consolidated financial services model that integrates banking, capital markets, wealth management and asset management activities.

BMO’s core businesses include personal and commercial banking—offering checking and savings accounts, lending, mortgages, and small-business services—alongside wealth management and private banking through its asset and investment management divisions.