BCE (NYSE:BCE) Trading Down 1.3% – Here’s Why

BCE Inc. (NYSE:BCE) (TSE:BCE) shares were down 1.3% during trading on Tuesday . The company traded as low as $23.41 and last traded at $23.54. Approximately 1,196,637 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 52% from the average daily volume of 2,494,548 shares. The stock had previously closed at $23.86.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently commented on BCE shares. Canaccord Genuity Group cut shares of BCE from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. Barclays lowered their price objective on shares of BCE from $34.00 to $30.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, November 11th. Canaccord Genuity Group reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of BCE in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. National Bank Financial lowered shares of BCE from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, September 30th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets upped their target price on shares of BCE from $48.00 to $51.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, September 19th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating, one has assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $45.00.

BCE Price Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $21.53 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 334.57, a P/E/G ratio of 4.04 and a beta of 0.54. The company’s 50 day moving average is $29.31 and its 200-day moving average is $32.32. The company has a current ratio of 0.62, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.26.

BCE Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Investors of record on Monday, December 16th will be paid a $0.737 dividend. This is an increase from BCE’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.73. This represents a $2.95 annualized dividend and a yield of 12.49%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 16th. BCE’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 4,214.29%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On BCE

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of BCE. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC lifted its stake in BCE by 3,355.4% in the 3rd quarter. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC now owns 1,852,025 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $64,450,000 after purchasing an additional 1,798,427 shares during the last quarter. AGF Management Ltd. raised its holdings in BCE by 5,036.0% in the 2nd quarter. AGF Management Ltd. now owns 1,354,413 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $43,842,000 after acquiring an additional 1,328,042 shares during the period. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. raised its holdings in BCE by 48.7% in the 3rd quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. now owns 3,563,534 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $123,877,000 after acquiring an additional 1,166,800 shares during the period. CIBC Asset Management Inc raised its holdings in BCE by 23.8% in the 2nd quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 5,520,090 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $178,677,000 after acquiring an additional 1,061,488 shares during the period. Finally, Toronto Dominion Bank raised its holdings in BCE by 12.0% in the 2nd quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank now owns 8,450,810 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $273,553,000 after acquiring an additional 905,857 shares during the period. 41.46% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About BCE

BCE Inc, a communications company, provides wireless, wireline, Internet, and television (TV) services to residential, business, and wholesale customers in Canada. The company operates through two segments, Bell Communication and Technology Services, and Bell Media. The Bell Communication and Technology Services segment provides wireless products and services including mobile data and voice plans and devices; wireline products and services comprising data, including internet access, internet protocol television, cloud-based services, and business solutions, as well as voice, and other communication services and products; and satellite TV and connectivity services for residential, small and medium-sized business, government, and large enterprise customers.