TORONTO, Sept. 2, 2026 /CNW/ -- Bank of Montreal (TSX:BMO) (NYSE:BMO) today announced that it has received approvals from the Toronto Stock Exchange (TSX) and the Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions Canada (OSFI) to proceed with its previously-announced normal course issuer bid to purchase, for cancellation, up to 25 million of its common shares, commencing September 8, 2026, and ending no later than September 7, 2027. Purchases under the bid may be made through the facilities of the TSX and may also be made through other designated exchanges and alternative Canadian trading systems or by such other means as may be permitted by a securities regulatory authority, including under automatic purchase plans, block purchases, private agreements or share repurchase programs under exemption orders issued by securities regulatory authorities.

The maximum number of common shares that may be repurchased under the normal course issuer bid represents approximately 3.6% per cent of the Bank's "public float" (as such term is defined in the TSX Company Manual) of common shares or 3.6% per cent of the Bank's issued and outstanding common shares, each as at August 31, 2026.

The proposed normal course issuer bid will provide the Bank with additional flexibility to manage its capital position.

The Bank will establish an automatic securities purchase plan on September 8, 2026 under which its broker, BMO Nesbitt Burns Inc., may at certain points in time purchase its common shares pursuant to the bid within a defined set of criteria. The actual number of common shares purchased under the bid, the timing of purchases and the price at which the common shares are bought will depend upon management discretion based on factors such as market conditions and capital adequacy. The purchase price for any common shares repurchased by the Bank under the bid will be market price at the time of acquisition.

There were 695,092,237 Bank of Montreal common shares issued and outstanding as at August 31, 2026, and the public float was 694,808,416 common shares. The average daily trading volume for the six months ended August 31, 2026, and the daily maximum number of common shares available for purchase (subject to the TSX's block purchase exception), calculated pursuant to the rules of the TSX for the purposes of the bid, were 2,231,845 and 557,961 common shares, respectively.

The Bank's current normal course issuer bid for the purchase of 30 million common shares commenced on September 5, 2025 and continues until September 4, 2026. As of August 31, 2026, the Bank repurchased 23,667,500 common shares under such bid at a volume weighted average price of approximately $197.76 per common share. Purchases were made through the facilities of the TSX and other designated exchanges and alternative Canadian trading systems.

About BMO Financial Group

BMO Financial Group is the eighth largest bank in North America by assets, with total assets of $1.5 trillion as of July 31, 2026. Serving clients for more than 200 years, BMO provides a broad range of personal and commercial banking, wealth management, global markets and investment banking products and services across Canada, the United States, and select markets globally. BMO is innovating for business value, by deploying and integrating human, digital and artificial intelligence to personalize client experiences, augment teams, and automate its business responsibly. Driven by its purpose, to Boldly Grow the Good in business and life, BMO is committed to driving positive change in the world, and making progress for a thriving economy, sustainable future, and stronger communities.

Caution Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

Bank of Montreal's public communications often include written or oral forward-looking statements. Statements of this type are included in this press release and may be included in other filings with Canadian securities regulators or the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, or in other communications. All such statements are made pursuant to the "safe harbor" provisions of, and are intended to be forward-looking statements under, the United States Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 and any applicable Canadian securities legislation. Forward-looking statements in this press release may include, but are not limited to, statements with respect to BMO's normal course issuer bid and any purchases of common shares thereunder. Forward-looking statements are typically identified by words such as "will", "would", "should", "believe", "expect", "anticipate", "project", "intend", "estimate", "plan", "goal", "commit", "target", "may", "might", "schedule", "forecast", "outlook", "timeline", "suggest", "seek" and "could" or negative or grammatical variations thereof.

By their nature, forward-looking statements require us to make assumptions and are subject to inherent risks and uncertainties, both general and specific in nature. There is significant risk that predictions, forecasts, conclusions or projections will not prove to be accurate, that our assumptions may not be correct, and that actual results may differ materially from such predictions, forecasts, conclusions or projections. We caution readers of this press release not to place undue reliance on our forward-looking statements, as a number of factors – many of which are beyond our control and the effects of which can be difficult to predict – could cause actual future results, conditions, actions or events to differ materially from the targets, expectations, estimates or intentions expressed in the forward-looking statements. The future outcomes that relate to forward-looking statements may be influenced by many factors, including, but not limited to: general economic and market conditions in the countries in which we operate, including labour challenges and changes in foreign exchange and interest rates; political conditions, including changes relating to, or affecting, economic or trade matters, including tariffs, countermeasures and tariff mitigation policies; changes to our credit ratings; cyber and information security, including the threat of data breaches, hacking, identity theft and corporate espionage, as well as the possibility of denial of service resulting from efforts targeted at causing system failure and service disruption; technology resilience, innovation and competition; technological change, including the use of data and artificial intelligence (AI) in our business, including generative AI; failure of third parties to comply with their obligations to us; disruptions of global supply chains; environmental and social risk, including climate change; the Canadian housing market and consumer leverage; inflationary pressures; changes in laws, including tax legislation and interpretation, or in supervisory expectations or requirements, including capital, interest rate and liquidity requirements and guidance, including if the bank were designated a global systemically important bank, and the effect of such changes on funding costs, liquidity and capital requirements; changes in monetary, fiscal or economic policy; weak, volatile or illiquid capital or credit markets; the level of competition in the geographic and business areas in which we operate; exposure to, and the resolution of, significant litigation or regulatory matters, our ability to successfully appeal adverse outcomes of such matters and the timing, determination and recovery of amounts related to such matters; the accuracy and completeness of the information we obtain with respect to our customers and counterparties; our ability to successfully execute our strategic plans, complete acquisitions or dispositions and integrate acquisitions, including obtaining regulatory approvals, and realize any anticipated benefits from such plans and transactions; critical accounting estimates and judgments, and the effects of changes in accounting standards, rules and interpretations on these estimates; operational and infrastructure risks, including with respect to reliance on third parties; global capital markets activities; the emergence or continuation of widespread health emergencies or pandemics, and their impact on local, national or international economies, as well as their heightening of certain risks that may affect our future results; the possible effects on our business of war or terrorist activities; natural disasters, such as earthquakes or flooding, and disruptions to public infrastructure, such as transportation, communications, power or water supply; and our ability to anticipate and effectively manage risks arising from all of the foregoing factors.

We caution that the foregoing list is not exhaustive of all possible factors. Other factors and risks could adversely affect our results. For further information, please refer to the discussion in the Risks That May Affect Future Results section, and the sections related to credit and counterparty, market, liquidity and funding, operational non-financial, legal and regulatory compliance, strategic, environmental and social, and reputation risk in the Enterprise-Wide Risk Management section of BMO's 2025 Annual Report, and the Risk Management section in our Third Quarter 2026 Report to Shareholders, all of which outline certain key factors and risks that may affect our future results. Investors and others should carefully consider these factors and risks, as well as other uncertainties and potential events, and the inherent uncertainty of forward-looking statements. We do not undertake to update any forward-looking statements, whether written or oral, that may be made from time to time by the organization or on its behalf, except as required by law. The forward-looking information contained in this press release is presented for the purpose of assisting shareholders and analysts in understanding our financial position as at and for the periods ended on the dates presented, as well as our strategic priorities and objectives, and may not be appropriate for other purposes.

Material economic assumptions underlying the forward-looking statements contained in this press release include those set out in the Economic Developments and Outlook section of BMO's 2025 Annual Report, as updated in the Economic Developments and Outlook section and the Risk Management – Geopolitical and Trade Developments section in our Third Quarter 2026 Report to Shareholders, as well as in the Allowance for Credit Losses section of BMO's 2025 Annual Report, as updated in the Allowance for Credit Losses section in our Third Quarter 2026 Report to Shareholders. Assumptions about the performance of the Canadian and U.S. economies, as well as overall market conditions and their combined effect on our business, are material factors we consider when determining our strategic priorities, objectives and expectations for our business. In determining our expectations for economic growth, we primarily consider historical economic data, past relationships between economic and financial variables, changes in government policies, and the risks to the domestic and global economy.

Internet: www.bmo.com

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SOURCE BMO Financial Group

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