BCE (NYSE:BCE) Shares Down 0.4% – Here’s What Happened

BCE Inc. (NYSE:BCE) (TSE:BCE) fell 0.4% on Friday . The company traded as low as $22.66 and last traded at $22.78. 597,892 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 77% from the average session volume of 2,560,359 shares. The stock had previously closed at $22.87.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have recently commented on BCE shares. Canaccord Genuity Group reissued a “hold” rating on shares of BCE in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. Canaccord Genuity Group downgraded shares of BCE from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. Barclays reduced 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. BMO Capital Markets upped their target price on shares of BCE from $48.00 to $51.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 19th. Finally, National Bank Financial lowered BCE from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, September 30th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating, one has given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $45.00.

BCE Stock Performance

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 cap of $20.66 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 323.57, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.04 and a beta of 0.54. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $27.70 and a 200 day moving average price of $31.72.

BCE Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 16th will be issued a $0.737 dividend. This represents a $2.95 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 13.02%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 16th. This is a boost from BCE’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.73. BCE’s dividend payout ratio is 4,214.29%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On BCE

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in BCE. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of BCE by 121.2% in the 3rd quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC now owns 1,232 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $43,000 after purchasing an additional 675 shares during the period. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. bought a new position in shares of BCE during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $51,000. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC lifted its position in shares of BCE by 321.0% in the third quarter. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC now owns 1,663 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $58,000 after purchasing an additional 1,268 shares in the last quarter. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC acquired a new position in BCE during the third quarter worth $65,000. Finally, Fairscale Capital LLC acquired a new position in BCE during the second quarter worth $76,000. 41.46% of the stock is currently 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.