BCE (NYSE:BCE) Trading Down 0.4% – What’s Next?

BCE Inc. (NYSE:BCE) (TSE:BCE) traded down 0.4% on Thursday . The company traded as low as $22.74 and last traded at $22.81. 909,388 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 64% from the average session volume of 2,557,801 shares. The stock had previously closed at $22.90.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently commented on BCE. Barclays decreased their price target 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 lifted their target price on shares of BCE from $48.00 to $51.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Thursday, September 19th. Canaccord Genuity Group lowered 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. Finally, Morgan Stanley started coverage on BCE in a research note on Monday, December 16th. They set an “underweight” rating on the stock. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating, one has given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $45.00.

BCE Price Performance

The stock has a market cap of $21.02 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 329.14, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.04 and a beta of 0.54. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.26, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a current ratio of 0.62. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $27.91 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $31.78.

BCE Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 16th will be given a $0.737 dividend. This represents a $2.95 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 12.80%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 16th. This is an increase from BCE’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.73. BCE’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 4,214.29%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On BCE

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in BCE. 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 purchasing an additional 675 shares during the last quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. acquired a new stake in shares of BCE during the third quarter worth $51,000. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC grew its stake 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 valued at $58,000 after acquiring an additional 1,268 shares in the last quarter. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC bought a new position in BCE during the third quarter worth about $65,000. Finally, Fairscale Capital LLC acquired a new stake in BCE in the 2nd quarter worth about $76,000. Institutional investors own 41.46% of the company’s stock.

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.