The Globe and Mail reports in its Thursday edition that Canaccord analyst Gabriel
Dechaine says Bank of Montreal ($93.14) enjoyed a
"confidence building" fourth
quarter. The Globe's David Leeder writes in the Eye On Equities column that Mr. Dechaine boosted his rating to "buy" from "hold." Mr. Dechaine also elevated his share target by $8 to $99. Analysts on average target the shares at $93.19. Desjardins analyst Doug Young says BMO "steals the show again." He raised his share target to $94 from $87.
Mr. Young says in a note: "We have to give credit when credit is due, and BMO had much stronger-than-expected 4Q FY16 results. We like BMO's more commercial (versus personal) lending focus in Canada. Its US P&C banking operations stand to benefit from potentially higher U.S. interest rates. However, we believe these items are well understood, and given only a 5.8-per-cent total potential return to our target price, we are maintaining our 'hold' rating." RBC analyst Darko Mihelic called the results a "good end to a solid year." He raised his target to $97 from $86 with a "sector perform" rating. "We believe BMO's U.S. franchise has strong momentum and this exposure will be in favor for the foreseeable future."
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