Bank of Montreal (NYSE:BMO) Stock Position Boosted by Rempart Asset Management Inc.

Rempart Asset Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Bank of Montreal (NYSE:BMO) (TSE:BMO) by 0.6% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 225,823 shares of the bank’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,380 shares during the quarter. Bank of Montreal comprises about 4.4% of Rempart Asset Management Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 10th biggest position. Rempart Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Bank of Montreal were worth $21,874,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Acadian Asset Management LLC grew its stake in Bank of Montreal by 42,247.6% during the 2nd quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 17,786 shares of the bank’s stock worth $1,490,000 after buying an additional 17,744 shares during the last quarter. Caprock Group LLC acquired a new position in Bank of Montreal in the 2nd quarter valued at $235,000. United Services Automobile Association increased its position in Bank of Montreal by 5.9% during the 2nd quarter. United Services Automobile Association now owns 27,325 shares of the bank’s stock worth $2,294,000 after purchasing an additional 1,515 shares during the period. AGF Management Ltd. grew its stake in shares of Bank of Montreal by 2.0% during the 2nd quarter. AGF Management Ltd. now owns 1,799,287 shares of the bank’s stock worth $158,840,000 after purchasing an additional 34,667 shares during the period. Finally, Trifecta Capital Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Bank of Montreal by 62.6% in the 2nd quarter. Trifecta Capital Advisors LLC now owns 3,738 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $313,000 after purchasing an additional 1,439 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 45.82% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have weighed in on BMO shares. Cibc World Mkts upgraded shares of Bank of Montreal from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, December 6th. StockNews.com cut Bank of Montreal from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. Royal Bank of Canada raised Bank of Montreal from a “sector perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday. CIBC upgraded Bank of Montreal from a “neutral” rating to a “sector outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, December 6th. Finally, Scotiabank upgraded shares of Bank of Montreal from a “sector perform” rating to a “sector outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, December 6th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating, four have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $122.40.

Bank of Montreal Trading Up 1.3 %

NYSE:BMO traded up $1.29 on Wednesday, reaching $98.16. The stock had a trading volume of 151,370 shares, compared to its average volume of 428,285. The company has a market cap of $71.62 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.06, a P/E/G ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 1.09. Bank of Montreal has a 12-month low of $76.98 and a 12-month high of $104.63. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11, a current ratio of 0.98 and a quick ratio of 0.98. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $95.71 and its two-hundred day moving average is $89.96.

Bank of Montreal Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, February 26th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, January 30th will be paid a $1.1329 dividend. This is a boost from Bank of Montreal’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.12. This represents a $4.53 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.62%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, January 30th. Bank of Montreal’s payout ratio is presently 67.34%.

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.