Bank Of Montreal Stock Price, News & Analysis

Bank of Montreal (TSX: BMO) (NYSE: BMO) announced that its Board of Directors has declared a quarterly dividend of $1.59 per share on common shares for Q2 2025, unchanged from the previous quarter. The board also declared dividends on various preferred shares: $0.190875 per share on Class B Series 33, $0.426 per share on Class B Series 44, $36.865 per share on Class B Series 50, and $35.285 per share on Class B Series 52.

The common share dividend is payable on May 27, 2025, to shareholders of record on April 29, 2025, while preferred share dividends are payable on May 26, 2025, to shareholders of record on the same date. All dividends are designated as "eligible" for Canadian tax purposes.

Shareholders can reinvest their cash dividends in BMO common shares through the Shareholder Dividend Reinvestment and Share Purchase Plan, with additional shares purchased on the open market without a discount.

BMO Financial Group reported strong first quarter 2025 financial results with net income of $2,138 million, up from $1,292 million in Q1 2024. Earnings per share (EPS) increased to $2.83 from $1.73 year-over-year. On an adjusted basis, net income was $2,289 million with EPS of $3.04, compared to $1,893 million and $2.56 in the prior year.

The bank delivered broad-based revenue growth across all operating groups, with particularly strong performance in BMO Capital Markets where net income increased 49% to $587 million. BMO Wealth Management saw a 53% increase in net income to $369 million.

The provision for credit losses rose to $1,011 million from $627 million in the prior year, primarily due to higher provisions in Commercial Banking and Canadian unsecured consumer lending.

BMO announced a quarterly dividend of $1.59 per common share, a 5% increase from the prior year. During the quarter, the bank purchased 1.2 million common shares for cancellation under its normal course issuer bid. The Common Equity Tier 1 (CET1) Ratio remained strong at 13.6%.

BMO Capital Markets is set to host its 34th annual Global Metals, Mining & Critical Minerals Conference from February 23-26, 2025, in Hollywood, Florida. The event will bring together more than 1,400 global industry leaders and institutional investors to discuss key themes including the impact of global events on commodities and capital markets, and sector evolution.

The conference will feature keynote presentations and panels with industry leaders, including presentations from major companies such as Agnico Eagle Mines, BHP, Rio Tinto, Vale SA, and numerous others. BMO's research analysts will be available for media interviews throughout the event.

Alan Tannenbaum, CEO and Group Head of BMO Capital Markets, emphasized the bank's century-long leadership in the metals and mining industry, while Co-Heads of Global Metals & Mining, Ilan Bahar and Jamie Rogers, highlighted the conference's importance in connecting industry peers and evaluating market opportunities.

BMO has joined the IBM Quantum Network, becoming the first Canadian bank to access IBM's advanced quantum computing infrastructure. This strategic move, announced on February 6, 2025, aligns with BMO's Digital First strategy to enhance its technological capabilities and deliver improved outcomes for customers and clients.

The partnership will enable BMO to develop and implement quantum-powered solutions across its operations, focusing on:

• Accelerating new approaches to help clients prosper
• Supporting business growth
• Optimizing investment portfolio strategies
• Developing enhanced risk management solutions

Through the IBM Quantum Network, BMO gains access to learning resources, experts, and collaborative events aimed at advancing quantum utility in financial services.

BMO has launched BMO Sync, a pioneering embedded banking solution that integrates BMO Online Banking for Business services directly with Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) and accounting systems. The first-of-its-kind solution in Canada allows clients to connect and automate their banking activities in under 30 minutes.

Developed in partnership with FISPAN, BMO Sync offers key features including automated payable workflows, improved cash flow management with near real-time visibility, and automated transaction reconciliation. The solution is compatible with systems like QuickBooks Online and Sage Intacct®.

The launch represents a significant step in BMO's Digital First strategy, aiming to streamline business operations and reduce errors through API-powered embedded banking. The service is now available to BMO Online Banking for Business clients in both the U.S. and Canada.

BMO has announced the upcoming release of its second annual Wine Market Report in Q2 2025, expanding its coverage to include both United States and Canada markets. The report, developed in partnership with WineBusiness and bw166, will provide comprehensive analysis of the North American wine industry during a period of significant market changes.

The expanded report will focus on key areas including: comprehensive surveys of winery owners and operators across North America, current market conditions, volume and value trends, impact of economic factors like interest rates, competition from other beverage categories, and production and supply dynamics. This initiative aims to help wine industry professionals navigate challenges and identify growth opportunities through data-driven insights.

Bank of Montreal (BMO) has received regulatory approvals from the Toronto Stock Exchange (TSX) and OSFI to proceed with its normal course issuer bid to purchase and cancel up to 20 million common shares. The share buyback program will run from January 22, 2025, to January 21, 2026, representing approximately 2.7% of BMO's public float.

The bank established an automatic securities purchase plan on January 9, 2025, through BMO Nesbitt Burns Inc. The timing and price of purchases will depend on management discretion, market conditions, and capital adequacy. As of January 6, 2025, BMO had 729,953,297 common shares outstanding, with a public float of 729,689,561 shares. The average daily trading volume for the six months ended December 31, 2024, was 3,072,276 shares, with a daily maximum purchase limit of 768,069 shares.

BMO announced that 90% of its employees have donated $31 million to United Way and other community organizations across North America during its 14th annual Employee Giving campaign, exceeding the $27 million goal. Additionally, BMO pledged $18 million in corporate donations to United Way chapters in Toronto, Chicago, Milwaukee, Los Angeles, and Montreal, bringing the total to $49 million.

The campaign, launched on Giving Tuesday (December 3, 2024), included 21 community kit packing events across 17 locations, where over 1,200 BMO employee volunteers assembled nearly 11,000 care kits. Over the past five years, BMO employees have personally contributed more than $130 million to North American charities through the annual campaign. In 2023, BMO's social impact included over $84 million in donations, with employees contributing 62,000 volunteer hours.

BMO (NYSE: BMO) and Canal Road Group (CRG) announced a strategic partnership where BMO will enable CRG to invest up to $1 billion in capital for direct lending operations. The partnership combines BMO's banking relationships and capital markets expertise with CRG's investment management capabilities in senior secured corporate debt investments.

As part of the arrangement, BMO will acquire a non-voting minority stake in CRG's management company. The collaboration aims to expand access to private lending capital for sponsor and corporate clients, leveraging BMO's extensive banking network and CRG's growing capital base. BMO will provide credit facilities to support CRG's strategy long-term, while benefiting from access to CRG's network of borrowers, lenders, sponsors, and management teams.