Verity & Verity LLC Cuts Position in BCE Inc. (NYSE:BCE)

Verity & Verity LLC lowered its position in BCE Inc. (NYSE:BCE) (TSE:BCE) by 0.9% in the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 425,549 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 3,738 shares during the quarter. Verity & Verity LLC’s holdings in BCE were worth $14,809,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in BCE. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV lifted its position in shares of BCE by 3,480.0% during the 2nd quarter. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV now owns 1,074 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 1,044 shares during the last quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC lifted its holdings in BCE by 121.2% during the 3rd quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC now owns 1,232 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $43,000 after buying an additional 675 shares during the last quarter. Brown Lisle Cummings Inc. boosted its position in shares of BCE by 60.0% during the 2nd quarter. Brown Lisle Cummings Inc. now owns 1,600 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $52,000 after acquiring an additional 600 shares in the last quarter. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC increased its holdings in shares of BCE by 321.0% in the 3rd quarter. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC now owns 1,663 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $58,000 after acquiring an additional 1,268 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Fairscale Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of BCE during the 2nd quarter worth about $76,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 41.46% of the company’s stock.

BCE Trading Up 1.5 %

Shares of BCE opened at $27.24 on Tuesday. 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 $26.51 and a 1-year high of $41.77. The stock has a market cap of $24.85 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 389.07, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.16 and a beta of 0.59. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $32.60 and a 200-day simple moving average of $33.34.

BCE Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 16th will be given a dividend of $0.737 per share. This is an increase from BCE’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.73. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 16th. This represents a $2.95 annualized dividend and a yield of 10.82%. BCE’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 4,214.29%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have issued reports on the company. Cibc World Mkts raised BCE from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, August 2nd. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price target on BCE from $48.00 to $51.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, September 19th. Canaccord Genuity Group cut BCE from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. Canaccord Genuity Group restated a “hold” rating on shares of BCE in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. Finally, Barclays cut their price target on shares of BCE from $34.00 to $30.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, November 11th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with 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.com, BCE presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $45.00.

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.