BMO Financial Group (NYSE:BMO, TSX:BMO), which includes the Bank of Montreal, exceeded market estimates for its fiscal third-quarter results as it raked in profits from its robust US and Canadian businesses.
The bank reported earnings of C$1.54bn in the three months until the close of July, which represents an 11% increase from the C$1.39bn earned in the year-ago quarter.
On a per-share basis, excluding items, the bank’s earnings jumped by 16% to C$2.36 in the quarter, compared with C$2.03 in the same period last year. Wall Street analysts had predicted the bank would earn C$2.27.
“Adjusted net income was up 14% and adjusted earnings per share grew 16% with a particularly good contribution from our US segment and from our competitively advantaged commercial businesses on both sides of the border,” said Darryl White, BMO’s CEO.
The bank’s Canadian personal and commercial banking unit reported earnings of C$642 mln in the quarter, which amounted to a C$29mln jump from last year.
Its US personal and commercial banking group also fared well in the quarter, posting net income of C$364mln, which was C$96mln higher than the year-ago quarter.
The bank’s wealth-management arm, meanwhile, saw earnings of C$291mln, which was up C$22mln from last year, and its capital markets group reported earnings of C$301mln, a C$20mln rise from the year-ago period.
In separate news, BMO also said on Tuesday that Craig Broderick, the ex-chief risk officer for Goldman Sachs, has been named to its board of directors.
Shares in Bank of Montreal, which is Canada’s fourth-biggest lender and the eighth-largest bank by assets in North America, jumped 1.7% to US$83.40 in Tuesday's pre-market session in New York. The shares closed Monday at C$106.16.