Bank of Montreal (NYSE:BMO) Shares Gap Down – Here’s Why

Shares of Bank of Montreal (NYSE:BMO) (TSE:BMO) gapped down before the market opened on Thursday . The stock had previously closed at $95.26, but opened at $91.28. Bank of Montreal shares last traded at $96.13, with a volume of 515,865 shares.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

BMO has been the subject of a number of research reports. Jefferies Financial Group downgraded Bank of Montreal from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 27th. Barclays lowered their price target on Bank of Montreal from $132.00 to $126.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, August 28th. Scotiabank downgraded shares of Bank of Montreal from a “sector outperform” rating to a “sector perform” rating and decreased their price objective for the stock from $123.00 to $112.00 in a report on Wednesday, August 28th. StockNews.com cut shares of Bank of Montreal from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Thursday, August 29th. Finally, TD Securities lowered shares of Bank of Montreal from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 27th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $119.75.

Bank of Montreal Price Performance

The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $92.90 and its 200-day simple moving average is $88.31. The stock has a market capitalization of $71.67 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.00, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.59 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a current ratio of 0.98.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Bank of Montreal

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund boosted its position in Bank of Montreal by 261.6% during the 3rd quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund now owns 4,249,552 shares of the bank’s stock worth $383,449,000 after acquiring an additional 3,074,389 shares during the period. BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp grew its position in Bank of Montreal by 138.4% in the 2nd quarter. BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp now owns 4,851,629 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $407,282,000 after buying an additional 2,816,385 shares in the last quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank raised its position in shares of Bank of Montreal by 14.9% during the 3rd quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank now owns 11,812,353 shares of the bank’s stock worth $1,065,474,000 after buying an additional 1,534,508 shares in the last quarter. JARISLOWSKY FRASER Ltd lifted its stake in shares of Bank of Montreal by 36.9% in the 2nd quarter. JARISLOWSKY FRASER Ltd now owns 5,239,662 shares of the bank’s stock worth $439,705,000 after acquiring an additional 1,412,532 shares during the period. Finally, International Assets Investment Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Bank of Montreal in the second quarter valued at approximately $80,915,000. 45.82% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.