Bank of Montreal (USA)

• The Hundred-Year Dividend

  By Matthew Luke - May 23, 2013 | Tickers: BMO, CHD, DD

  Many dividend-seeking investors like to screen for sky-high yielding companies when looking for their next possible investment opportunity. While there is nothing inherently wrong about this strategy, high yields alone can often mean little if the company lacks the financial strength to maintain and continually increase their dividend payouts. Some of the most consistently well-performing companies have been those who value dividend appreciation. And in the world of consistent dividend more »

• Canadian Banks Have a Lot to Offer Investors

  By Robert Ciura - May 22, 2013 | Tickers: BMO, CM, RY, BNS

  Investing in big banks is a conversation usually confined to the biggest bulge-bracket banks in the United States. The resurgence of our nation’s financial institutions since the dark days of the recent financial crisis has been well-documented throughout the media. Indeed, there are many American banks that have shown renewed signs of life as the economy in the United States continues its gradual recovery and consumer lending levels begin more »

• Why I Like Canadian Bank Stocks

  By Jody Kohut - April 27, 2013 | Tickers: BAC, BMO, CM, NA, RY, BNS, TD, WFC

  In the search for stability and yield many core holdings include financials – in particular bank stocks. I personally like some of the Canadian banks at the moment. I know I’m not the only person to have suggested Canadian banks as an investment. I remember reading an article some time ago about someone recommending CIBC. Then he referred to the acronym as standing for the Canadian Imperial Bank of Communication more »

• Canadian Bank Looking To Gain More US Exposure

  By Mike Thiessen - March 26, 2013 | Tickers: BMO, EPHC, TD

  In December, Toronto-based TD Bank (NYSE: TD) announced that it had entered into an agreement to purchase the U.S.-based asset management firm Epoch Investment Partners (NASDAQ: EPHC) for just under $700 million. Although Toronto Dominion Bank does operate some bank branches in a few states, this purchase represents one of the largest direct investments that the company has ever made in the United States.

  This deal comes as more »

• O' Canada! 3 Reasons to Avoid Investing in the Great White North

  By Robert Baillieul - March 20, 2013 | Tickers: BMO, ABX, CNQ, EWC

  Canada has been struggling. The nation's stock market performance, as measured by the iShares MSCI Canada Index (NYSEMKT: EWC), has trailed the S&P 500 by 30% over the past two years due to sagging commodity prices. 

  So in addition to ditching the penny and hippie music, here're three more reasons to avoid investing in the "True North." 

  Oil glut

  Canadian oil isn't reaching the highest bidder more »

• The Investor's Guide to Picking Canadian Bank Stocks

  By Robert Baillieul - March 15, 2013 | Tickers: BMO, CM, RY, BNS, TD |

  It's a challenge to pick among Canada's apparently identical Big-5 banks. In investment circles, most discussion is centered on which stock is the cheapest. But with each company pursuing diverging strategies, investors should base their decision on their own thesis. 

  Royal Bank of Canada

  Thesis: With the worst of the financial crisis behind us, the global investment banking industry is poised for a rebound. 

  With $90 billion in more »

• 3 Can't-Miss Quotes for Bank Investors This Earnings Season

  By Robert Baillieul - March 14, 2013 | Tickers: BMO, RY, BNS

  This first quarter Canada's Big 5 banks reported surprisingly strong headline numbers. But by digging into conference call transcripts, investors can find interesting management commentary on key trends. Let's take a look at three of my three favorite quotes from this quarter and discuss the key takeaways for investors.

  Real estate crash unlikely

  The biggest concern north of the border is a U.S. style housing crash. Pundits more »

• 4 Big Canadian Banks To Consider

  By Maxwell Fisher - December 26, 2012 | Tickers: BMO, RY, BNS

  From time to time, I like to check in on large banks to our north, in Canada. These banks have generally avoided many of the credit related problems that befell large American banks late last decade. But there are some concerns up north. For the fourth time since 2008, this summer the Canadian government has mandated tightened qualifications for mortgage borrowers. There is concern both over the household debt carried more »

• Buy These Large-Cap Stocks for Sustainable Income

  By Anh HOANG - December 20, 2012 | Tickers: BMO, RY, TOT

  Following the recent article relating to the search for large cap dividend stocks, which have a record of paying sustainable dividends with decent yields, this article will unveil three more stocks with the similar screening criteria but a bit lower standard in terms of growth and yield. The screen has been run with five main criteria: (1) a minimum 10 years of historical dividends, (2) market cap more than $10 more »

• 5 Unheralded Financial Stocks with Top-Notch Yields

  By Meena Krishnamsetty - November 7, 2012 | Tickers: BMO, CM, MFG, BNS, WBK

  In the same way as our “5 Dividend Stocks for the Next 5 Years” series, we have identified five high-dividend paying financial stocks that we believe can provide stable income amid a tough economic backdrop, and during a time when financials have underperformed the broader market. The Dow Jones Industrial Average is up 50% since 2009, while the Dow Jones U.S. Financial Index is up only 40%. Our list more »

• Hidden Assets on the Small Cap Balance Sheet

  By Christopher Lacich - October 11, 2012 | Tickers: BMO, GY

  A small cap value investor has to dig deep to find the hidden "value" that a publicly-traded company may possess on its balance sheet. This value may remain embedded in the stock until a catalyst unlocks it. The catalyst may be years, if not a decade or more away.

  There are two small cap companies: GenCorp (NYSE: GY), and a company traded in Canada, known as Guardian Capital Group that more »

• Look To Canadian Banks, Not JPMorgan, For Stability

  By Maxwell Fisher - August 28, 2012 | Tickers: BMO, CM, JPM, WFC

  The beat goes on for JPMorgan Chase (NYSE: JPM). It is painful to look at the statements that were made by management last spring and contrast that with the developing reality of now. That is exactly what I am going to do here.

  For a reference point, let’s look at CEO Jamie Dimon's spring letter to shareholders. On Page 4, Dimon wrote “the best way to build shareholder more »

• Investing Abroad: Canadian Stocks

  By Matthew Luke - August 19, 2012 | Tickers: AGU, BMO, RCI, TRP, VRX

  Diversification is the best defense against global uncertainty. Living abroad, that is one truth that I have come to appreciate more and more. With so much uncertainty in Europe and the rest of the world, we sometimes forget that truth. In these times of uncertainty, many investors seek the safety of good US companies, avoiding the rest of the world completely. Diversification means more than just different sectors of the US economy. Diversification also means foreign companies that will protect your portfolio from domestic risk.

• Big Bank, Great Service, eh?

  By Chad Henage - March 29, 2012 | Tickers: BMO, RY, BNS, TD

  It's rare to hear anything positive said about big banks recently. In the last few years, many of the largest banks and financial institutions in the U.S., have been blamed for the problems in the economy. If you are looking for a bank with the size and clout of some of the biggest U.S. banks, but with the earnings power of some of the smaller banks, look to The Great White North. Our neighbors to the north Canada, might house some of the most consistently undervalued names in the financial industry. One in particular that I've come across is TD Bank (NYSE: TD). I recently wrote a post about how BB&T shows good organic growth in cash, loans, and deposits. In that post I discovered that BB&T is outgrowing PNC, SunTrust, and Regions Financial. If you are looking for an even better value than BB&T, look at TD.

• Look To Canadian Banks For Better Profits

  By Maxwell Fisher - March 28, 2012 | Tickers: BAC, BMO, RF, RY |

  It occurred to me, why is the banking and mortgage landscape so much different north of the border in Canada, than it is here in the United States? Then it hit me that residential mortgages, the scourge of the domestic banking system late last decade, is run so fundamentally differently in Canada that must account for something.

  Despite retrenchment, many American banks in all size categories have large exposures to more »

• Are Canadian Banks a Better Investment?

  By Maxwell Fisher - March 26, 2012 | Tickers: BMO, CM, USB, WFC

  Today, I am going to do an “apples to apples” comparison of earnings quality between two large Canadian banks, and two large, successful American banks. In most cases, comparing an internationally sound bank to either Bank of America or Citigroup is going to make the American banks are going to look bad. But if comparisons are made with two well respected banks like Wells Fargo (NYSE: WFC) and U.S more »

• 1 Bank to Buy After Earnings, 2 to Avoid

  By Michael French - January 26, 2012 | Tickers: BMO, CFR, ZION

  More banks continue to report a mixed bag of earnings, as improved credit quality fights it out with declining margins and revenues. There are clearly some winners and losers, as those banks that were hurt worst in the recent recession have a ways to go yet before we can say they have recovered. Some banks though came through the past few years relatively unscathed, and for them, it is business more »

• Diversification the Right Way

  By Justin Carley - January 4, 2012 | Tickers: BMO, COG, CMI, DF, EP.DL, FDO, FSLR, HRB, HBAN, MWW, THC, WYNN, XL

  There are generally two schools of thought when it comes to investing; the trend is your friend and mean reversion.  Some investors only want to buy stocks at a 52-week low and others when the stock is breaking to a new high.  With the beginning of the year full of stock picks and forecasts, I propose a four stock portfolio comprised of the top two stocks in the S&P 500 over the previous calendar year and the two worst stocks in the S&P 500.  I back tested for just the past three years, but the results are pretty remarkable; 100% success in beating the Index and an average return of 32.8% versus 14.5% for the S&P 500.