Bank of Montreal (TSE:BMO) Is An Attractive Dividend Stock, Here's Why

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There is a lot to be liked about Bank of Montreal (TSE:BMO) as an income stock. It has paid dividends over the past 10 years. The company is currently worth CA$62b, and now yields roughly 4.1%. Does Bank of Montreal tick all the boxes of a great dividend stock? Below, I'll take you through my analysis.

Check out our latest analysis for Bank of Montreal

5 checks you should do on a dividend stock

When researching a dividend stock, I always follow the following screening criteria:

• Does it pay an annual yield higher than 75% of dividend payers?
• Does it consistently pay out dividends without missing a payment of significantly cutting payout?
• Has dividend per share risen in the past couple of years?
• Does earnings amply cover its dividend payments?
• Will the company be able to keep paying dividend based on the future earnings growth?

How does Bank of Montreal fare?

The company currently pays out 46% of its earnings as a dividend, according to its trailing twelve-month data, meaning the dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. In the near future, analysts are predicting a payout ratio of 43% which, assuming the share price stays the same, leads to a dividend yield of 4.4%. In addition to this, EPS should increase to CA$9.42.

If you want to dive deeper into the sustainability of a certain payout ratio, you may wish to consider the cash flow of the business. Companies with strong cash flow can sustain a higher payout ratio, while companies with weaker cash flow generally cannot.

Reliablity is an important factor for dividend stocks, particularly for income investors who want a strong track record of payment and a positive outlook for future payout. In the case of BMO it has increased its DPS from CA$2.8 to CA$4 in the past 10 years. It has also been paying out dividend consistently during this time, as you'd expect for a company increasing its dividend levels. These are all positive signs of a great, reliable dividend stock.

Compared to its peers, Bank of Montreal generates a yield of 4.1%, which is high for Banks stocks but still below the market's top dividend payers.

Next Steps:

With these dividend metrics in mind, I definitely rank Bank of Montreal as a strong income stock, and is worth further research for anyone who considers dividends an important part of their portfolio strategy. Given that this is purely a dividend analysis, you should always research extensively before deciding whether or not a stock is an appropriate investment for you. I always recommend analysing the company's fundamentals and underlying business before making an investment decision. There are three essential factors you should further research:

1. Future Outlook: What are well-informed industry analysts predicting for BMO’s future growth? Take a look at our free research report of analyst consensus for BMO’s outlook.
2. Valuation: What is BMO worth today? Even if the stock is a cash cow, it's not worth an infinite price. The intrinsic value infographic in our free research report helps visualize whether BMO is currently mispriced by the market.
3. Other Dividend Rockstars: Are there better dividend payers with stronger fundamentals out there? Check out our free list of these great stocks here.

To help readers see past the short term volatility of the financial market, we aim to bring you a long-term focused research analysis purely driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis does not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements.

The author is an independent contributor and at the time of publication had no position in the stocks mentioned. For errors that warrant correction please contact the editor at editorial-team@simplywallst.com.

Simply Wall St analyst Simply Wall St and Simply Wall St have no position in any of the companies mentioned. This article is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material.