BCE (NYSE:BCE) Trading Down 2.4% – Here’s What Happened

BCE Inc. (NYSE:BCE) (TSE:BCE)’s stock price traded down 2.4% during mid-day trading on Monday . The company traded as low as $22.58 and last traded at $22.61. 885,094 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 65% from the average session volume of 2,553,575 shares. The stock had previously closed at $23.16.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have issued reports on BCE. Canaccord Genuity Group cut shares of BCE from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. Edward Jones downgraded BCE from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. Canaccord Genuity Group reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of BCE in a 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 on the stock in a research note on Monday, November 11th. Finally, Morgan Stanley assumed coverage on shares of BCE in a report on Monday, December 16th. They issued an “underweight” rating for the company. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating, one has issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, BCE presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $45.00.

BCE Stock Up 0.3 %

The company has a current ratio of 0.62, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.26. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $28.12 and its 200 day moving average price is $31.85. The company has a market capitalization of $20.89 billion, a P/E ratio of 327.14, a P/E/G ratio of 4.04 and a beta of 0.54.

BCE Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 16th will be issued a dividend of $0.737 per share. This represents a $2.95 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 12.87%. This is an increase from BCE’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.73. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 16th. BCE’s payout ratio is presently 4,214.29%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On BCE

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