National Bank Financial Has Negative View of BMO Q1 Earnings

Bank of Montreal (NYSE:BMO) (TSE:BMO) – Equities researchers at National Bank Financial reduced their Q1 2025 earnings per share (EPS) estimates for Bank of Montreal in a note issued to investors on Monday, February 17th. National Bank Financial analyst G. Dechaine now forecasts that the bank will post earnings of $1.56 per share for the quarter, down from their previous estimate of $1.58. The consensus estimate for Bank of Montreal’s current full-year earnings is $7.76 per share. National Bank Financial also issued estimates for Bank of Montreal’s Q2 2025 earnings at $1.90 EPS, Q3 2025 earnings at $2.19 EPS, Q4 2025 earnings at $2.13 EPS and FY2025 earnings at $7.77 EPS.

BMO has been the topic of several other research reports. Cibc World Mkts raised shares of Bank of Montreal from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, December 6th. Royal Bank of Canada upgraded shares of Bank of Montreal from a “sector perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $133.00 to $161.00 in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. CIBC upgraded Bank of Montreal from a “neutral” rating to a “sector outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, December 6th. Scotiabank raised Bank of Montreal from a “sector perform” rating to a “sector outperform” rating in a report on Friday, December 6th. Finally, StockNews.com raised Bank of Montreal from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, four have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $128.00.

Bank of Montreal Stock Down 0.3 %

BMO stock opened at $101.04 on Wednesday. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $98.59 and its 200-day moving average price is $93.01. The stock has a market cap of $73.64 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.48, a PEG ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 1.09. Bank of Montreal has a twelve month low of $76.98 and a twelve month high of $104.63. The company has a quick ratio of 0.98, a current ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11.

Institutional Trading of Bank of Montreal

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in BMO. North Star Asset Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of Bank of Montreal by 1.2% during the 4th quarter. North Star Asset Management Inc. now owns 8,422 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $817,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. Passumpsic Savings Bank lifted its position in Bank of Montreal by 2.1% during the third quarter. Passumpsic Savings Bank now owns 5,142 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $464,000 after purchasing an additional 105 shares during the last quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. grew its stake in shares of Bank of Montreal by 1.3% in the 3rd quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. now owns 8,602 shares of the bank’s stock worth $776,000 after buying an additional 113 shares in the last quarter. Valeo Financial Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Bank of Montreal by 4.6% in the 4th quarter. Valeo Financial Advisors LLC now owns 2,865 shares of the bank’s stock worth $278,000 after buying an additional 125 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wealthspire Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Bank of Montreal by 2.0% during the 4th quarter. Wealthspire Advisors LLC now owns 6,355 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $617,000 after buying an additional 125 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 45.82% of the company’s stock.

Bank of Montreal Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, February 26th. Investors of record on Thursday, January 30th will be paid a dividend of $1.1329 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, January 30th. This is a positive change from Bank of Montreal’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.12. This represents a $4.53 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.49%. Bank of Montreal’s dividend payout ratio is presently 63.32%.

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.