GAMMA Investing LLC Invests $164,000 in Bank of Montreal (NYSE:BMO)

GAMMA Investing LLC purchased a new position in shares of Bank of Montreal (NYSE:BMO) (TSE:BMO) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 1,740 shares of the bank’s stock, valued at approximately $164,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Lorne Steinberg Wealth Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Bank of Montreal by 4.8% during the 4th quarter. Lorne Steinberg Wealth Management Inc. now owns 69,216 shares of the bank’s stock worth $6,850,000 after purchasing an additional 3,162 shares during the period. PDS Planning Inc grew its stake in Bank of Montreal by 23.0% in the 4th quarter. PDS Planning Inc now owns 3,583 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $355,000 after acquiring an additional 669 shares during the last quarter. Duality Advisers LP acquired a new stake in Bank of Montreal in the 4th quarter valued at about $1,187,000. Lindbrook Capital LLC grew its stake in Bank of Montreal by 13.1% in the 4th quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 2,474 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $245,000 after acquiring an additional 287 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank grew its stake in Bank of Montreal by 2.2% in the 4th quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 226,741 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $22,545,000 after acquiring an additional 4,837 shares during the last quarter. 45.82% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on the stock. Barclays assumed coverage on shares of Bank of Montreal in a research note on Wednesday, March 20th. They issued an “overweight” rating on the stock. StockNews.com raised shares of Bank of Montreal from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Sunday, March 3rd. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on shares of Bank of Montreal in a research note on Thursday, February 22nd. They issued a “buy” rating on the stock. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $131.00.

Bank of Montreal Price Performance

Bank of Montreal stock opened at $90.90 on Friday. Bank of Montreal has a 12-month low of $73.98 and a 12-month high of $100.12. The stock has a market capitalization of $66.29 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.35, a P/E/G ratio of 1.78 and a beta of 1.13. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $94.16 and its two-hundred day moving average is $90.16. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12, a current ratio of 0.94 and a quick ratio of 0.94.

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

Bank of Montreal Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, May 28th. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 29th will be paid a dividend of $1.1172 per share. This is a boost from Bank of Montreal’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.11. This represents a $4.47 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.92%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 26th. Bank of Montreal’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 62.02%.

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.