Anson Funds Management LP Takes Position in Bank of Montreal (NYSE:BMO)

Anson Funds Management LP bought a new position in Bank of Montreal (NYSE:BMO) (TSE:BMO) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm bought 20,000 shares of the bank’s stock, valued at approximately $1,940,000.

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. IFP Advisors Inc boosted its holdings in shares of Bank of Montreal by 179.5% during the fourth quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 313 shares of the bank’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 201 shares during the period. Addison Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Bank of Montreal by 282.8% in the 4th quarter. Addison Advisors LLC now owns 333 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 246 shares during the period. Vision Financial Markets LLC acquired a new stake in Bank of Montreal during the fourth quarter worth about $39,000. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB bought a new position in Bank of Montreal in the third quarter worth $45,000. Finally, First Horizon Advisors Inc. boosted its position in shares of Bank of Montreal by 140.9% during the 4th quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 612 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $59,000 after acquiring an additional 358 shares in the last quarter. 45.82% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Bank of Montreal Trading Up 1.3 %

NYSE BMO opened at $97.62 on Friday. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $95.63 and its 200-day moving average is $96.48. Bank of Montreal has a one year low of $76.98 and a one year high of $106.00. 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 has a market cap of $70.68 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.99, a P/E/G ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 0.95.

Bank of Montreal (NYSE:BMO) (TSE:BMO) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 25th. The bank reported $3.04 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.68 by $1.36. The firm had revenue of $9.27 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.58 billion. Bank of Montreal had a return on equity of 10.18% and a net margin of 9.22%. The business’s revenue was up 20.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.56 EPS. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Bank of Montreal will post 7.71 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Bank of Montreal Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, May 27th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 29th will be issued a dividend of $1.1094 per share. This represents a $4.44 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.55%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 29th. Bank of Montreal’s dividend payout ratio is 57.35%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have commented on the stock. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Bank of Montreal from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, February 28th. CIBC cut shares of Bank of Montreal from a “sector outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, April 4th. Cibc World Mkts cut shares of Bank of Montreal from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, April 4th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada lifted their target price on Bank of Montreal from $161.00 to $163.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $128.40.

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.