BCE (NYSE:BCE) Downgraded by Edward Jones to Hold

BCE (NYSE:BCE) (TSE:BCE) was downgraded by analysts at Edward Jones from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note issued on Tuesday, FinViz reports.

Other research analysts also recently issued reports about the company. BMO Capital Markets lifted their target price on BCE from $48.00 to $51.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Thursday, September 19th. Barclays reduced their target price on BCE from $35.00 to $34.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. National Bank Financial downgraded shares of BCE from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, September 30th. Finally, Cibc World Mkts raised shares of BCE from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, one has issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $46.33.

BCE Stock Down 9.3 %

NYSE:BCE opened at $29.12 on Tuesday. BCE has a one year low of $28.82 and a one year high of $41.77. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.00, a current ratio of 0.65 and a quick ratio of 0.62. The company has a market cap of $26.57 billion, a PE ratio of 18.31, a P/E/G ratio of 5.39 and a beta of 0.59. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $34.13 and its 200 day simple moving average is $33.70.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. ESL Trust Services LLC bought a new position in shares of BCE during the 1st quarter worth about $31,000. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV boosted its holdings in BCE by 3,480.0% in the second quarter. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV now owns 1,074 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $35,000 after acquiring an additional 1,044 shares in the last quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC grew its stake in BCE by 121.2% in the third quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC now owns 1,232 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $43,000 after acquiring an additional 675 shares during the period. Brown Lisle Cummings Inc. increased its holdings in shares of BCE by 60.0% during the second quarter. Brown Lisle Cummings Inc. now owns 1,600 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $52,000 after acquiring an additional 600 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC raised its position in shares of BCE by 321.0% during the third quarter. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC now owns 1,663 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $58,000 after purchasing an additional 1,268 shares during the period. 41.46% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.