Rempart Asset Management Inc. Sells 14,105 Shares of Bank Of Montreal $BMO

Rempart Asset Management Inc. lessened its position in shares of Bank Of Montreal (NYSE:BMO) (TSE:BMO) by 6.4% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 207,665 shares of the bank’s stock after selling 14,105 shares during the quarter. Bank Of Montreal comprises about 5.1% of Rempart Asset Management Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 6th largest position. Rempart Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Bank Of Montreal were worth $26,985,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Bank Of Montreal by 0.5% in the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 32,343,957 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $4,214,676,000 after acquiring an additional 149,944 shares during the last quarter. Canerector Inc. lifted its stake in Bank Of Montreal by 18,035.0% during the third quarter. Canerector Inc. now owns 22,668,750 shares of the bank’s stock worth $2,952,605,000 after purchasing an additional 22,543,750 shares during the last quarter. TD Asset Management Inc lifted its stake in Bank Of Montreal by 10.3% during the third quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 19,079,026 shares of the bank’s stock worth $2,486,691,000 after purchasing an additional 1,789,188 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Bank Of Montreal in the second quarter worth $1,184,220,000. Finally, CIBC Asset Management Inc boosted its holdings in Bank Of Montreal by 17.3% in the third quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 7,260,160 shares of the bank’s stock worth $949,441,000 after purchasing an additional 1,070,546 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 45.82% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have weighed in on BMO. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Bank Of Montreal from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Sunday, February 8th. Zacks Research raised shares of Bank Of Montreal from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, February 19th. Scotiabank reiterated a “sector perform” rating on shares of Bank Of Montreal in a research note on Friday, January 9th. Barclays cut shares of Bank Of Montreal from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating in a report on Friday, March 20th. Finally, TD Securities upgraded Bank Of Montreal from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 27th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have given a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Bank Of Montreal presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $163.00.

Bank Of Montreal Stock Performance

BMO stock opened at $137.11 on Thursday. Bank Of Montreal has a 1 year low of $85.40 and a 1 year high of $149.01. The stock has a market capitalization of $96.84 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.92, a PEG ratio of 0.94 and a beta of 0.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a current ratio of 1.02. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $140.50 and its two-hundred day moving average is $132.17.

Bank Of Montreal (NYSE:BMO) (TSE:BMO) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 25th. The bank reported $2.51 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.35 by $0.16. Bank Of Montreal had a net margin of 11.76% and a return on equity of 12.16%. The business had revenue of $7.21 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.73 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $3.04 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 6.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts predict that Bank Of Montreal will post 7.71 EPS for the current year.

Bank Of Montreal Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, May 26th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 29th will be given a $1.67 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 29th. This represents a $6.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.9%. Bank Of Montreal’s dividend payout ratio is 56.56%.

Bank Of Montreal Company Profile

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.