BCE Inc. (NYSE:BCE) Shares Sold by Advocate Group LLC

Advocate Group LLC trimmed its position in BCE Inc. (NYSE:BCE) (TSE:BCE) by 2.7% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 146,811 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 4,023 shares during the period. Advocate Group LLC’s holdings in BCE were worth $3,403,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of BCE. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC acquired a new position in shares of BCE during the 4th quarter worth approximately $9,522,000. SG Americas Securities LLC acquired a new position in shares of BCE during the 4th quarter worth approximately $17,271,000. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of BCE by 1.5% during the 4th quarter. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. now owns 65,155 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,510,000 after purchasing an additional 978 shares during the last quarter. Mitchell & Pahl Private Wealth LLC lifted its holdings in BCE by 3.3% in the fourth quarter. Mitchell & Pahl Private Wealth LLC now owns 24,532 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $569,000 after acquiring an additional 789 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Addenda Capital Inc. lifted its holdings in BCE by 5.9% in the fourth quarter. Addenda Capital Inc. now owns 697,533 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $16,169,000 after acquiring an additional 39,115 shares during the last quarter. 41.46% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently commented on the company. Barclays reiterated an “underweight” rating on shares of BCE in a report on Tuesday. Bank of America cut BCE from a “neutral” rating to an “underperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. National Bank Financial cut BCE from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, September 30th. Morgan Stanley assumed coverage on BCE in a research note on Monday, December 16th. They set an “underweight” rating on the stock. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group restated a “hold” rating on shares of BCE in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating, one has assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $45.00.

BCE Stock Performance

NYSE:BCE opened at $23.53 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $21.46 billion, a PE ratio of 336.07, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.83 and a beta of 0.56. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $24.63 and its 200 day moving average price is $30.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.26, a current ratio of 0.62 and a quick ratio of 0.60. BCE Inc. has a 12 month low of $21.87 and a 12 month high of $41.15.

BCE Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Investors of record on Monday, December 16th were issued a $0.737 dividend. This represents a $2.95 annualized dividend and a yield of 12.53%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 16th. This is a positive change from BCE’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.73. BCE’s dividend payout ratio is 4,028.57%.

BCE Profile

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.