Zions Bancorporation N.A. Cuts Holdings in BCE Inc. (NYSE:BCE)

Zions Bancorporation N.A. lowered its holdings in BCE Inc. (NYSE:BCE) (TSE:BCE) by 2.2% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 177,541 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 4,079 shares during the quarter. Zions Bancorporation N.A.’s holdings in BCE were worth $6,178,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the business. BNP Paribas Financial Markets grew its stake in BCE by 20.0% during the 1st quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 20,698 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $703,000 after buying an additional 3,450 shares during the last quarter. Bleakley Financial Group LLC increased its stake in BCE by 6.7% in the 1st quarter. Bleakley Financial Group LLC now owns 10,822 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $368,000 after purchasing an additional 680 shares in the last quarter. Trillium Asset Management LLC increased its stake in BCE by 0.5% in the 1st quarter. Trillium Asset Management LLC now owns 142,974 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $4,862,000 after purchasing an additional 670 shares in the last quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in BCE during the first quarter worth $886,000. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in BCE by 0.6% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 14,725,614 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $500,376,000 after buying an additional 80,879 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 41.46% of the company’s stock.

BCE Stock Performance

BCE opened at $27.21 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $24.82 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 388.64, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.28 and a beta of 0.59. 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 1-year low of $27.11 and a 1-year high of $41.77. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $33.13 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $33.46.

BCE Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 16th will be paid a dividend of $0.737 per share. This is an increase from BCE’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.73. This represents a $2.95 annualized dividend and a yield of 10.84%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 16th. BCE’s payout ratio is 4,228.57%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Canaccord Genuity Group reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of BCE in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. Barclays reduced their target price on BCE from $34.00 to $30.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday. Edward Jones cut BCE from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. Canaccord Genuity Group cut BCE from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. Finally, National Bank Financial cut BCE from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, September 30th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, one has issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $45.00.

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.