PDS Planning Inc Purchases 669 Shares of Bank of Montreal (NYSE:BMO)

PDS Planning Inc lifted its position in Bank of Montreal (NYSE:BMO) (TSE:BMO) by 23.0% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 3,583 shares of the bank’s stock after purchasing an additional 669 shares during the period. PDS Planning Inc’s holdings in Bank of Montreal were worth $355,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in BMO. Schechter Investment Advisors LLC lifted its position in Bank of Montreal by 3.8% during the fourth quarter. Schechter Investment Advisors LLC now owns 3,161 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $313,000 after buying an additional 116 shares during the period. Pacer Advisors Inc. lifted its position in Bank of Montreal by 1.9% during the fourth quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 6,622 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $655,000 after buying an additional 126 shares during the period. Brighton Jones LLC lifted its position in Bank of Montreal by 4.1% during the third quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 3,527 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $298,000 after buying an additional 140 shares during the period. Checchi Capital Advisers LLC lifted its position in Bank of Montreal by 4.6% during the third quarter. Checchi Capital Advisers LLC now owns 3,177 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $268,000 after buying an additional 141 shares during the period. Finally, Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors LLC lifted its position in Bank of Montreal by 5.6% during the third quarter. Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors LLC now owns 2,713 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $229,000 after buying an additional 143 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 45.82% of the company’s stock.

Bank of Montreal Stock Up 0.7 %

Shares of BMO traded up $0.64 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $93.63. The company had a trading volume of 120,151 shares, compared to its average volume of 665,469. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $94.20 and a 200-day moving average price of $89.96. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12, a quick ratio of 0.94 and a current ratio of 0.94. The stock has a market capitalization of $68.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.74, a P/E/G ratio of 1.76 and a beta of 1.13. Bank of Montreal has a 52-week low of $73.98 and a 52-week high of $100.12.

Bank of Montreal (NYSE:BMO) (TSE:BMO) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 27th. The bank reported $1.90 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.24 by ($0.34). The company had revenue of $5.68 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.34 billion. Bank of Montreal had a return on equity of 11.89% and a net margin of 7.40%. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Bank of Montreal will post 8.94 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Bank of Montreal Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, May 28th. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 29th will be given a $1.1172 dividend. This is a positive change from Bank of Montreal’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.11. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 26th. This represents a $4.47 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.77%. Bank of Montreal’s payout ratio is 62.02%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have commented on BMO shares. Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on Bank of Montreal in a research report on Thursday, February 22nd. They set a “buy” rating for the company. StockNews.com raised Bank of Montreal from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Sunday, March 3rd. Finally, Barclays started coverage on Bank of Montreal in a research report on Wednesday, March 20th. They issued an “overweight” rating for the company. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Bank of Montreal currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $131.00.

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.