Shares of Bank of Montreal BMO slid 0.69% to C$140.65 Friday, in what proved to be an all-around negative trading session for the Canadian market, with the S&P/TSX Composite Index GSPTSE falling 1.22% to 24,767.73.

RBC Capital Markets upgraded Bank of Montreal (NYSE:BMO) and Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce (NYSE:CM) to Outperform from Sector Perform in a recent note, as analyst Darko Mihelic sees a "transitional year" for Canadian lenders in 2025.

Bank of Montreal closed C$5.91 short of its 52-week high of C$147.54, which the company reached on December 6th.

Mihelic hiked his price target on Toronto-listed BMO shares from $133 to $161, while upgrading his rating to “Outperform” from “Sector perform.” The stock closed 1.75 per cent higher at $141.55 per share on Wednesday, outpacing the BMO Equal Weight Banks Index ETF ( ZEB.TO ), a basket of Canada’s biggest lenders.

Fintel reports that on January 9, 2025, RBC Capital upgraded their outlook for Bank of Montreal (NYSE:BMO) from Sector Perform to Outperform. Analyst Price Forecast Suggests 2.15% Upside As of December 24,