Bank of Montreal (NYSE:BMO) Shares Bought by Alberta Investment Management Corp

Alberta Investment Management Corp grew its holdings in Bank of Montreal (NYSE:BMO) (TSE:BMO) by 0.3% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 1,392,000 shares of the bank’s stock after buying an additional 3,600 shares during the period. Bank of Montreal accounts for approximately 0.9% of Alberta Investment Management Corp’s portfolio, making the stock its 15th largest position. Alberta Investment Management Corp’s holdings in Bank of Montreal were worth $135,067,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in BMO. CWM LLC grew its position in shares of Bank of Montreal by 54.0% in the third quarter. CWM LLC now owns 1,318 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $119,000 after purchasing an additional 462 shares during the last quarter. Creative Planning boosted its position in Bank of Montreal by 16.8% during the third quarter. Creative Planning now owns 34,231 shares of the bank’s stock worth $3,088,000 after acquiring an additional 4,918 shares during the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its position in Bank of Montreal by 207.8% during the third quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 668 shares of the bank’s stock worth $56,000 after acquiring an additional 451 shares during the last quarter. Signaturefd LLC boosted its position in Bank of Montreal by 3.6% during the third quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 8,894 shares of the bank’s stock worth $802,000 after acquiring an additional 313 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Private Advisor Group LLC boosted its position in Bank of Montreal by 3.2% during the third quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 21,094 shares of the bank’s stock worth $1,903,000 after acquiring an additional 662 shares during the last quarter. 45.82% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Bank of Montreal Trading Up 0.2 %

NYSE BMO opened at $101.28 on Wednesday. Bank of Montreal has a one year low of $76.98 and a one year high of $104.63. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $98.58 and a 200-day simple moving average of $92.96. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a current ratio of 0.98. The firm has a market capitalization of $73.82 billion, a PE ratio of 14.51, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 1.09.

Bank of Montreal Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, February 26th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, January 30th will be issued a $1.1329 dividend. The ex-dividend date 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 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.47%. Bank of Montreal’s payout ratio is 63.32%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

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

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.