Bank of Montreal (NYSE:BMO) Sees Large Increase in Short Interest

Bank of Montreal (NYSE:BMO) (TSE:BMO) was the target of a significant increase in short interest in March. As of March 15th, there was short interest totalling 7,520,000 shares, an increase of 45.2% from the February 28th total of 5,180,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 602,800 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 12.5 days. Approximately 1.0% of the company’s shares are sold short.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Bank of Montreal

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of BMO. IFP Advisors Inc lifted its stake in Bank of Montreal by 179.5% during the 4th quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 313 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 201 shares during the period. Addison Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Bank of Montreal by 282.8% in the fourth quarter. Addison Advisors LLC now owns 333 shares of the bank’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 246 shares during the last quarter. Vision Financial Markets LLC bought a new stake in Bank of Montreal in the 4th quarter worth approximately $39,000. Dunhill Financial LLC bought a new stake in Bank of Montreal in the 4th quarter worth approximately $39,000. Finally, Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB purchased a new stake in Bank of Montreal during the 3rd quarter valued at $45,000. 45.82% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Bank of Montreal Stock Down 1.8 %

NYSE:BMO traded down $1.77 on Friday, reaching $95.26. 588,322 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 851,849. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $99.30 and its 200 day simple moving average is $95.89. The company has a market capitalization of $69.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.65, a PEG ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 1.07. Bank of Montreal has a 12 month low of $76.98 and a 12 month high of $106.00. The company has a current ratio of 0.98, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11.

Bank of Montreal (NYSE:BMO) (TSE:BMO) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 25th. The bank reported $3.04 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.68 by $1.36. The company had revenue of $9.27 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.58 billion. Bank of Montreal had a net margin of 9.22% and a return on equity of 10.18%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 20.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.56 earnings per share. Equities analysts predict that Bank of Montreal will post 7.71 EPS 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. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, April 29th will be paid a $1.1094 dividend. This represents a $4.44 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.66%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, April 29th. Bank of Montreal’s dividend payout ratio is currently 57.09%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

BMO has been the subject of several research reports. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Bank of Montreal from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, February 28th. 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 upped their target price on Bank of Montreal from $161.00 to $163.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. Cibc World Mkts upgraded Bank of Montreal from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, December 6th. Finally, CIBC raised Bank of Montreal from a “neutral” rating to a “sector outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, December 6th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, four have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $128.40.

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.