Pathway Financial Advisers LLC Reduces Holdings in BCE Inc. (NYSE:BCE)

Pathway Financial Advisers LLC decreased its stake in shares of BCE Inc. (NYSE:BCE) (TSE:BCE) by 97.4% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 48,088 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 1,803,937 shares during the period. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC’s holdings in BCE were worth $1,115,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of BCE. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its position in BCE by 1,147.3% during the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,397 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 1,285 shares in the last quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB boosted its position in shares of BCE by 67.6% during the fourth quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 1,981 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $46,000 after purchasing an additional 799 shares in the last quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. bought a new stake in shares of BCE during the third quarter valued at approximately $51,000. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC purchased a new stake in BCE in the third quarter worth $65,000. Finally, AlphaMark Advisors LLC raised its holdings in BCE by 640.0% in the fourth quarter. AlphaMark Advisors LLC now owns 2,960 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $69,000 after purchasing an additional 2,560 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 41.46% of the company’s stock.

BCE Stock Performance

BCE stock opened at $23.27 on Thursday. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $23.76 and its 200 day simple moving average is $29.50. The company has a current ratio of 0.62, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.26. BCE Inc. has a 12-month low of $21.87 and a 12-month high of $38.14. The stock has a market capitalization of $21.23 billion, a PE ratio of 193.92, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.91 and a beta of 0.57.

BCE (NYSE:BCE) (TSE:BCE) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The utilities provider reported $0.56 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.53 by $0.03. BCE had a net margin of 0.99% and a return on equity of 17.89%. As a group, research analysts forecast that BCE Inc. will post 2 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

BCE Cuts Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be paid a $0.6965 dividend. This represents a $2.79 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 11.97%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. BCE’s payout ratio is 2,350.00%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Edward Jones lowered shares of 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. Bank of America cut BCE from a “neutral” rating to an “underperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut BCE from a “neutral” rating to an “underweight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group reissued a “hold” rating on shares of BCE in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating, one has assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $40.50.

BCE 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.