BCE (NYSE:BCE) Shares Down 0.6% – Here’s What Happened

BCE Inc. (NYSE:BCE) (TSE:BCE)’s share price traded down 0.6% during mid-day trading on Monday . The stock traded as low as $23.01 and last traded at $23.65. 838,337 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 74% from the average session volume of 3,174,682 shares. The stock had previously closed at $23.79.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have weighed in on BCE. Morgan Stanley assumed coverage on BCE in a report on Monday, December 16th. They set an “underweight” rating for the company. Bank of America cut shares of BCE from a “neutral” rating to an “underperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. Canaccord Genuity Group downgraded BCE from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. Barclays reaffirmed an “underweight” rating on shares of BCE in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group restated a “hold” rating on shares of BCE in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating, one has assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $45.00.

BCE Stock Performance

The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $24.22 and its 200 day moving average price is $29.89. The firm has a market cap of $22.81 billion, a P/E ratio of 357.14, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.94 and a beta of 0.57. 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 Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 16th were paid a dividend of $0.737 per share. This represents a $2.95 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 11.79%. This is an increase from BCE’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.73. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 16th. BCE’s dividend payout ratio is currently 4,028.57%.

Institutional Trading of BCE

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of BCE. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC increased its position in shares of BCE by 3,355.4% during the 3rd quarter. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC now owns 1,852,025 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $64,450,000 after purchasing an additional 1,798,427 shares during the last quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. grew its stake in shares of BCE by 48.7% in the third 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 buying an additional 1,166,800 shares in the last quarter. National Bank of Canada FI increased its holdings in BCE by 4.8% during the third quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 18,873,961 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $656,421,000 after buying an additional 864,472 shares during the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC acquired a new stake in BCE in the fourth quarter valued at $17,271,000. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its position in shares of BCE by 25.3% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 3,657,533 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $127,282,000 after acquiring an additional 738,656 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 41.46% of the company’s stock.

BCE Company 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.