Triasima Portfolio Management inc. Sells 374,184 Shares of Bank of Montreal (NYSE:BMO)

Triasima Portfolio Management inc. lessened its stake in Bank of Montreal (NYSE:BMO) (TSE:BMO) by 79.7% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 95,516 shares of the bank’s stock after selling 374,184 shares during the quarter. Triasima Portfolio Management inc.’s holdings in Bank of Montreal were worth $8,014,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Bank of Montreal by 1.9% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 28,617,952 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $2,795,402,000 after buying an additional 544,767 shares in the last quarter. TD Asset Management Inc raised its position in Bank of Montreal by 19.9% during the fourth quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 19,225,705 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $1,911,635,000 after purchasing an additional 3,187,998 shares in the last quarter. National Bank of Canada FI lifted its stake in Bank of Montreal by 4.9% during the second quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 14,761,836 shares of the bank’s stock worth $1,231,564,000 after purchasing an additional 692,049 shares during the last quarter. FIL Ltd increased its stake in shares of Bank of Montreal by 138.3% in the 4th quarter. FIL Ltd now owns 9,872,642 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $976,870,000 after purchasing an additional 5,729,145 shares during the last quarter. Finally, CIBC Asset Management Inc raised its holdings in shares of Bank of Montreal by 6.6% during the 4th quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 8,874,517 shares of the bank’s stock worth $880,924,000 after buying an additional 548,284 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 45.82% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have issued reports on BMO shares. StockNews.com cut Bank of Montreal from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 29th. UBS Group initiated coverage on shares of Bank of Montreal in a research report on Tuesday, July 2nd. They set a “neutral” rating for the company. Desjardins lowered 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 report on Tuesday, August 27th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group downgraded Bank of Montreal from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 27th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $119.75.

Bank of Montreal Trading Down 0.8 %

Shares of BMO stock traded down $0.64 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $82.33. 1,214,850 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 875,863. The stock has a market cap of $60.04 billion, a PE ratio of 13.68, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.30 and a beta of 1.11. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $84.53 and its 200 day simple moving average is $89.23. The company has a quick ratio of 0.99, a current ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13. Bank of Montreal has a 12 month low of $73.98 and a 12 month high of $100.12.

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

Bank of Montreal Cuts Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, November 26th. Investors of record on Wednesday, October 30th will be issued a $1.123 dividend. This represents a $4.49 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.46%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, October 30th. Bank of Montreal’s payout ratio is presently 74.58%.

Bank of Montreal 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.