BMO Q4 earnings rise to $560M

BMO 3-month TSX chart

Bank of Montreal became the first of Canada's big banks to report its year-end earnings when it said Tuesday that it made $560 million in the fourth quarter.

BMO said that was up from $452 million in the same quarter of last year.

Buoyed by its Canadian personal and commercial operations, the bank said the results were good "in the context of current economic and market conditions."

"Our overall performance in the quarter was good and while we are not immune to the difficulties of the current market environment, we are focused on our core operations and serving our customers," said Bill Downe, BMO's president and chief executive officer.

BMO's provisions for loan losses totalled $465 million for the quarter, including a $150-million increase in the bank's general allowance. Specific loss provisions of $315 million were down quarter over quarter but up from a year ago because of U.S. economic weakness, particularly in real estate markets.

After getting as high as $37.25 in early trading on the TSX, BMO's stock traded up 83 cents to $34.95 by the end of the session.

The bank declared a quarterly common-share dividend of 70 cents, unchanged from the previous quarter.

Looking ahead, BMO said it will not offer 2009 financial targets, citing the weak economic situation.