06:34 AM EST, 12/05/2024 (MT Newswires) -- Bank of Montreal ( BERZ ) (BMO.TO, BMO) was at last look down 2.4% in US premarket trade on Thursday after reporting mixed fourth-quarter earnings. The bank still lifted its dividend and said it will repurchase up to 20 million of its common shares.

Net income rose to $2,304 million on the quarter compared with $1,710 million in the same period last year. The company lodged adjusted net income of $1,542 million, down from $2,243 million. It reported earnings per share of $2.94, compared with $2.19. Adjusted EPS was $1.90, compared with $2.93.

"Our overall results were impacted by elevated provisions for credit losses, and we expect quarterly provisions to moderate through 2025 as the business environment improves," said BMO Chief Executive Darryl White.

Among other highlights, BMO reported provision for credit losses (PCL) of $1,523 million, compared with $446 million. It said the current quarter included PCL on performing loans of $416 million.

Return on equity (ROE) of 11.4% compared with 9.3%; Adjusted ROE of 7.4% compared with 12.4%.

It had a Common Equity Tier 1 (CET1) Ratio of 13.6%, compared with 12.5%.

"We grew customer deposits across our franchise by $61 billion, up 9% from last year. Our CET1 ratio strengthened meaningfully to 13.6%, creating capacity to support our clients and return excess capital to our shareholders," said White. "We are confident in the execution of our strategy to drive profitable growth and enhanced return on equity over the medium term."

BMO will pay a quarterly dividend of $1.59 per share, an increase of $0.04 cent, or 3%, from the prior quarter and up 5% from the previous year.

The bank also said it will buy back up to 20 million of its common shares under a normal course issuer bid, subject to the approval of the Toronto Stock Exchange.