Bank of Montreal (NYSE:BMO) Shares Sold by Susquehanna Portfolio Strategies LLC

Susquehanna Portfolio Strategies LLC trimmed its position in shares of Bank of Montreal (NYSE:BMO) (TSE:BMO) by 44.7% in the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 213,343 shares of the bank’s stock after selling 172,596 shares during the quarter. Susquehanna Portfolio Strategies LLC’s holdings in Bank of Montreal were worth $17,889,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Rothschild Investment LLC purchased a new position in shares of Bank of Montreal in the second quarter valued at approximately $40,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Bank of Montreal by 34.6% in the first quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 623 shares of the bank’s stock worth $56,000 after acquiring an additional 160 shares in the last quarter. Olistico Wealth LLC acquired a new position in shares of Bank of Montreal in the second quarter worth $59,000. Ridgewood Investments LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Bank of Montreal in the second quarter valued at $65,000. Finally, Crewe Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Bank of Montreal in the first quarter valued at $70,000. 45.82% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have weighed in on BMO. StockNews.com downgraded Bank of Montreal from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Thursday, August 29th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut shares of Bank of Montreal from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and reduced their target price for the company from $137.00 to $124.00 in a report on Monday, June 3rd. Scotiabank downgraded shares of Bank of Montreal from a “sector outperform” rating to a “sector perform” rating and decreased their price target for the stock from $123.00 to $112.00 in a research note on Wednesday, August 28th. UBS Group assumed coverage on shares of Bank of Montreal in a research report on Tuesday, July 2nd. They issued a “neutral” rating on the stock. Finally, Bank of America cut shares of Bank of Montreal from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and decreased their price objective for the stock from $134.00 to $117.00 in a research report on Wednesday, August 28th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $119.75.

Bank of Montreal Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:BMO opened at $90.44 on Friday. Bank of Montreal has a 12 month low of $73.98 and a 12 month high of $100.12. The firm has a market capitalization of $65.96 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.02, a P/E/G ratio of 2.48 and a beta of 1.11. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13, a current ratio of 0.98 and a quick ratio of 0.98. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $85.11 and its 200 day moving average price is $88.72.

Bank of Montreal (NYSE:BMO) (TSE:BMO) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, August 27th. The bank reported $2.64 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.76 by ($0.12). The firm had revenue of $8.21 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.25 billion. Bank of Montreal had a return on equity of 11.23% and a net margin of 8.50%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up .2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.08 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Bank of Montreal will post 8.06 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Bank of Montreal Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, November 26th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, October 30th will be given a dividend of $1.123 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, October 30th. This represents a $4.49 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.97%. Bank of Montreal’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 76.25%.

About Bank of Montreal

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.