BCE (NYSE:BCE) Trading Up 0.5% – Should You Buy?

BCE Inc. (NYSE:BCE) (TSE:BCE)’s share price was up 0.5% during trading on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $23.58 and last traded at $23.52. Approximately 775,377 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 69% from the average daily volume of 2,528,682 shares. The stock had previously closed at $23.40.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on BCE. Morgan Stanley started coverage on shares of BCE in a research note on Monday. They issued an “underweight” rating for the company. National Bank Financial lowered BCE from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, September 30th. Canaccord Genuity Group reissued a “hold” rating on shares of BCE in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. Canaccord Genuity Group cut shares of BCE from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. Finally, Edward Jones downgraded shares of BCE from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. One investment 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. According to MarketBeat, BCE has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $45.00.

BCE Stock Down 0.6 %

The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $28.92 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $32.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.26, a current ratio of 0.62 and a quick ratio of 0.60. The company has a market capitalization of $21.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 332.14, a PEG ratio of 4.04 and a beta of 0.54.

BCE Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 16th will be issued a $0.737 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 16th. This represents a $2.95 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 12.68%. This is a boost from BCE’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.73. BCE’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 4,214.29%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On BCE

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. National Bank of Canada FI grew its position in shares of 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 acquiring an additional 864,472 shares during the last quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank increased its stake in shares of BCE by 12.0% in the second 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 period. CIBC Asset Management Inc raised its holdings in shares of BCE by 23.8% during the second quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 5,520,090 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $178,677,000 after buying an additional 1,061,488 shares during the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company boosted its position in shares of BCE by 0.4% during the second quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 5,068,728 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $163,932,000 after buying an additional 21,487 shares during the period. Finally, Federated Hermes Inc. grew its holdings in BCE by 5.5% in the 2nd quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 3,564,393 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $115,379,000 after buying an additional 186,659 shares in 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.