Bank of America Downgrades Bank of Montreal (NYSE:BMO) to Neutral

Bank of Montreal (NYSE:BMO) (TSE:BMO) was downgraded by research analysts at Bank of America from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Wednesday, MarketBeat reports. They presently have a $117.00 price objective on the bank’s stock, down from their previous price objective of $134.00. Bank of America‘s price target would suggest a potential upside of 41.03% from the stock’s previous close.

Other equities analysts also recently issued reports about the stock. UBS Group began coverage on shares of Bank of Montreal in a research note on Tuesday, July 2nd. They issued a “neutral” rating for the company. Scotiabank lowered shares of Bank of Montreal from a “sector outperform” rating to a “sector perform” rating and lowered their target price for the company from $123.00 to $112.00 in a report on Wednesday. Desjardins downgraded shares of Bank of Montreal from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 29th. TD Securities downgraded shares of Bank of Montreal from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada downgraded shares of Bank of Montreal from an “outperform” rating to a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 30th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Bank of Montreal has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $119.75.

Bank of Montreal Stock Performance

NYSE BMO opened at $82.96 on Wednesday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $84.70 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $89.75. The company has a quick ratio of 0.99, a current ratio of 0.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12. Bank of Montreal has a 12-month low of $73.98 and a 12-month high of $100.12. The firm has a market cap of $60.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.78, a PEG ratio of 2.04 and a beta of 1.12.

Bank of Montreal (NYSE:BMO) (TSE:BMO) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 27th. The bank reported $2.64 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.76 by ($0.12). The firm had revenue of $8.21 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.25 billion. Bank of Montreal had a net margin of 8.25% and a return on equity of 11.60%. The business’s revenue was up .2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company posted $2.08 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts forecast that Bank of Montreal will post 7.91 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Principal Securities Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Bank of Montreal during the 4th quarter valued at $33,000. Rothschild Investment LLC purchased a new position in shares of Bank of Montreal during the 2nd quarter valued at $40,000. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Bank of Montreal by 3,375.0% during the 4th quarter. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. now owns 417 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $41,000 after buying an additional 405 shares in the last quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC purchased a new position in shares of Bank of Montreal during the 4th quarter valued at $44,000. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Bank of Montreal by 39.0% during the 4th quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 463 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $46,000 after buying an additional 130 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 45.82% of the company’s stock.

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.