Bank Of Montreal (NYSE:BMO) Increases Dividend to C$1.71 Per Share

Bank Of Montreal (NYSE:BMO) (TSE:BMO) announced a quarterly dividend on Wednesday, May 27th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, July 30th will be given a dividend of 1.71 per share by the bank on Wednesday, August 26th. This represents a c) annualized dividend and a yield of 4.2%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, July 30th. This is a 2.4% increase from Bank Of Montreal’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.67.

Bank Of Montreal has increased its dividend by an average of 0.1%annually over the last three years and has raised its dividend every year for the last 4 years. Bank Of Montreal has a dividend payout ratio of 51.9% indicating that its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Analysts expect Bank Of Montreal to earn $13.34 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $4.80 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 36.0%.

Bank Of Montreal Trading Up 0.8%

BMO stock traded up $1.24 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $163.08. The stock had a trading volume of 966,376 shares, compared to its average volume of 837,930. The firm has a market cap of $114.30 billion, a PE ratio of 18.94, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.91 and a beta of 0.94. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11, a current ratio of 1.02 and a quick ratio of 1.02. Bank Of Montreal has a 12-month low of $104.08 and a 12-month high of $163.44. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $146.69 and its 200 day moving average price is $138.45.

Bank Of Montreal (NYSE:BMO) (TSE:BMO) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 25th. The bank reported $2.51 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.35 by $0.16. The firm had revenue of $7.21 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.73 billion. Bank Of Montreal had a net margin of 11.76% and a return on equity of 12.16%. Bank Of Montreal’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $3.04 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that Bank Of Montreal will post 11.56 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the stock. Scotiabank reiterated a “sector perform” rating on shares of Bank Of Montreal in a report on Monday, May 4th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Bank Of Montreal from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Sunday, February 8th. Barclays lowered shares of Bank Of Montreal from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating in a report on Friday, March 20th. TD Securities raised shares of Bank Of Montreal from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 27th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Bank Of Montreal in a research report on Friday, April 17th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have given a Buy rating, seven have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $163.00.

Bank Of Montreal Company Profile

Bank of Montreal (NYSE:BMO), commonly known as BMO Financial Group, is one of Canada’s largest and longest-established banks. Founded in Montreal and headquartered in Montreal, Quebec, the bank provides a broad range of financial services to retail, commercial, corporate and institutional clients. BMO is publicly listed in both Canada and the United States and operates under a consolidated financial services model that integrates banking, capital markets, wealth management and asset management activities.

BMO’s core businesses include personal and commercial banking—offering checking and savings accounts, lending, mortgages, and small-business services—alongside wealth management and private banking through its asset and investment management divisions.