Bank of Montreal (TSE:BMO) Price Target Raised to C$225.00

Bank of Montreal (TSE:BMO) (NYSE:BMO) had its price objective increased by stock analysts at Jefferies Financial Group from C$213.00 to C$225.00 in a research note issued to investors on Thursday,BayStreet.CA reports. The brokerage presently has a “hold” rating on the bank’s stock. Jefferies Financial Group’s target price indicates a potential downside of 12.36% from the stock’s current price.

A number of other research analysts also recently weighed in on the company. Canaccord Genuity Group raised their price objective on Bank of Montreal from C$242.00 to C$265.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 7th. Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce increased their price target on Bank of Montreal from C$226.00 to C$244.00 and gave the company an “outperformer” rating in a report on Thursday, May 28th. Scotiabank lifted their price target on shares of Bank of Montreal from C$234.00 to C$239.00 and gave the company a “sector outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 16th. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their price objective on shares of Bank of Montreal from C$205.00 to C$230.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Thursday, May 28th. Finally, Desjardins lifted their target price on shares of Bank of Montreal from C$230.00 to C$260.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 5th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Bank of Montreal has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of C$239.75.

Bank of Montreal Stock Performance

Shares of Bank of Montreal stock traded up C$0.85 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching C$256.72. 588,603 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,491,297. The company has a market cap of C$179.81 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.72, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.71 and a beta of 1.22. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is C$247.18 and its 200 day simple moving average is C$216.69. Bank of Montreal has a 52 week low of C$155.58 and a 52 week high of C$258.21.

Bank of Montreal (TSE:BMO) (NYSE:BMO) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 27th. The bank reported C$3.67 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. Bank of Montreal had a net margin of 12.63% and a return on equity of 11.25%. The firm had revenue of C$9.57 billion during the quarter. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Bank of Montreal will post 9.6514585 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Bank of Montreal

In related news, Director William Darryl White sold 27,167 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of C$225.74, for a total transaction of C$6,132,678.58. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 87,166 shares in the company, valued at C$19,676,852.84. This trade represents a 23.76% decrease in their position. Also, insider Mona Elizabeth Malone sold 5,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, June 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of C$244.65, for a total value of C$1,223,250.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 1,758 shares in the company, valued at approximately C$430,094.70. This represents a 73.99% decrease in their position. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 45,004 shares of company stock valued at $10,339,904. Corporate insiders own 0.03% of the company’s stock.

About Bank of Montreal

Bank of Montreal is a diversified financial-services provider based in North America, operating four business segments: Canadian personal and commercial banking, U.S. P&C banking, wealth management, and capital markets.