Bank of Montreal (TSE:BMO) Receives Consensus Recommendation of “Hold” from Analysts

Bank of Montreal (TSE:BMO) (NYSE:BMO) has been given an average recommendation of “Hold” by the thirteen research firms that are presently covering the stock, MarketBeat reports. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and five have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month price objective among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is C$127.33.

BMO has been the subject of several analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their target price on shares of Bank of Montreal from C$141.00 to C$124.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday, August 12th. Cormark dropped their price objective on shares of Bank of Montreal from C$129.00 to C$118.00 in a report on Wednesday, August 28th. Royal Bank of Canada cut their price target on Bank of Montreal from C$118.00 to C$106.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, August 28th. Desjardins decreased their price objective on Bank of Montreal from C$125.00 to C$120.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, August 28th. Finally, National Bankshares raised their target price on Bank of Montreal from C$127.00 to C$148.00 in a research note on Wednesday, November 20th.

Insider Activity at Bank of Montreal

In other news, Senior Officer Steven Lloyd Tennyson sold 7,908 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of C$112.16, for a total transaction of C$886,977.10. Also, Senior Officer David Robert Casper sold 12,819 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of C$121.85, for a total value of C$1,562,007.97. 0.03% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Bank of Montreal Price Performance

TSE:BMO opened at C$133.64 on Thursday. Bank of Montreal has a one year low of C$107.16 and a one year high of C$134.16. The company has a market cap of C$97.48 billion, a PE ratio of 15.38, a PEG ratio of 0.71 and a beta of 1.16. The firm has a 50-day moving average of C$126.18 and a 200-day moving average of C$121.19.

Bank of Montreal (TSE:BMO) (NYSE:BMO) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 27th. The bank reported C$2.64 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of C$2.72 by C($0.08). Bank of Montreal had a return on equity of 8.49% and a net margin of 21.20%. The company had revenue of C$8.19 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of C$8.23 billion. On average, equities research analysts expect that Bank of Montreal will post 9.6514585 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Bank of Montreal Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, November 26th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, November 26th will be given a dividend of $1.55 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, October 30th. This represents a $6.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.64%. Bank of Montreal’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 71.35%.

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.