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Bank of MontrealBMO.TOTOP PICKApr 03, 2023Stock price when the opinion was issued
As of Jun 19, 2026. Market Open.
Q4 a bit shy, due to some charges. Otherwise in line. The one to buy. Better growth rate due to Bank of the West synergies. Still fairly valued around 9x, with around 5% growth. Wait for a pullback, and then sell puts to get in at a lower strike price and get some dividends. Fine over next 5-10 years; not if it will work, but when.
After recent merger, now one of the top 10 banks in the US, operating in 32 states. Merger will bring cost savings. Strong suit is commercial banking and lending. Large Canadian wealth management, good-sized NA capital markets, plus a smaller insurance business. 13% ROE plus 7% growth rate in dividends, resulting in a double-digit return over the coming cycle. Yield is 5.17%.
(Analysts’ price target is $127.24)Canadian banks are reasonably priced, but still headwinds on loan losses. He likes the one with the best balance sheet, TD. He also likes CM, with its outsized dividend yield and low valuation. BMO is OK.
For the heavy lifting in your portfolio, he'd look instead at insurance companies with similar yields and more growth over the next 1-2 years.
Canadian banks are one of the strongest oligopolies in the world. Raising dividend shows the results miss is not a long-term problem. Digestion issues on latest acquisition. Raising loan losses to normal levels. Expenses were higher. Inflation has increased wages. Keep holding, comfortable buying more.
Unless another bank melts down, financials will continue to recover. The contagion spread to Big Six in Canada with stocks like TD getting beaten down. With the greatest exposure to the U.S., TD is one to buy (already recommended by Stockchase), but BMO is another that will bounce back. Stockchaser Michael O'Reilly picks it for its consistent and attractive numbers: 5.9x PE, 1.18x price-to-book, and a 4.79% dividend yield. To compare, Royal Bank trades at 12.27x and pays 4.11%. Thanks to the banking crisis, BMO shares sank 6.9% in March, but in the the last week have recovered 2%. Expect this trend to continue.