Federated Hermes Inc. Decreases Stock Holdings in Bank of Montreal (NYSE:BMO)

Federated Hermes Inc. lowered its stake in shares of Bank of Montreal (NYSE:BMO) (TSE:BMO) by 4.7% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 84,337 shares of the bank’s stock after selling 4,162 shares during the period. Federated Hermes Inc.’s holdings in Bank of Montreal were worth $8,344,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Bank of Montreal by 192.1% during the third quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 333 shares of the bank’s stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 219 shares in the last quarter. Compagnie Lombard Odier SCmA purchased a new stake in Bank of Montreal during the third quarter worth about $29,000. Stonehage Fleming Financial Services Holdings Ltd purchased a new stake in Bank of Montreal during the third quarter worth about $33,000. Crewe Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Bank of Montreal by 63.5% during the third quarter. Crewe Advisors LLC now owns 515 shares of the bank’s stock worth $43,000 after buying an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Global Retirement Partners LLC boosted its holdings in Bank of Montreal by 177.4% during the fourth quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 527 shares of the bank’s stock worth $50,000 after buying an additional 337 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 45.82% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

BMO has been the topic of several recent research reports. Barclays initiated coverage on shares of Bank of Montreal in a report on Wednesday, March 20th. They issued an “overweight” rating on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on shares of Bank of Montreal in a report on Thursday, February 22nd. They issued a “buy” rating on the stock. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of Bank of Montreal from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Sunday, March 3rd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $131.00.

Bank of Montreal Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:BMO opened at $92.84 on Thursday. Bank of Montreal has a 52 week low of $73.98 and a 52 week high of $100.12. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $94.27 and a 200-day simple moving average of $90.07. The company has a quick ratio of 0.94, a current ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12. The company has a market cap of $67.70 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.72, a P/E/G ratio of 1.78 and a beta of 1.13.

Bank of Montreal (NYSE:BMO) (TSE:BMO) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 27th. The bank reported $1.90 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.24 by ($0.34). The firm had revenue of $5.68 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.34 billion. Bank of Montreal had a return on equity of 11.89% and a net margin of 7.40%. Equities research analysts forecast that Bank of Montreal will post 8.94 EPS for the current year.

Bank of Montreal Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, May 28th. Investors of record on Monday, April 29th will be given a dividend of $1.1172 per share. This represents a $4.47 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.81%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 26th. This is an increase from Bank of Montreal’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.11. Bank of Montreal’s dividend payout ratio is 62.02%.

Bank of Montreal 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.