Capital Investment Advisory Services LLC Sells 1,187 Shares of BCE Inc. (NYSE:BCE)

Capital Investment Advisory Services LLC lowered its position in shares of BCE Inc. (NYSE:BCE) (TSE:BCE) by 8.2% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 13,216 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 1,187 shares during the period. Capital Investment Advisory Services LLC’s holdings in BCE were worth $306,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in BCE. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC increased its position in BCE by 3,355.4% during the 3rd quarter. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC now owns 1,852,025 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $64,450,000 after purchasing an additional 1,798,427 shares during the period. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. increased its holdings in BCE by 48.7% during the third quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. now owns 3,563,534 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $123,877,000 after buying an additional 1,166,800 shares during the period. National Bank of Canada FI raised its stake in BCE by 4.8% in 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 buying an additional 864,472 shares in the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC bought a new position in BCE in the fourth quarter worth approximately $17,271,000. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its holdings in BCE by 25.3% during the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 3,657,533 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $127,282,000 after buying an additional 738,656 shares during the period. 41.46% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

BCE Trading Down 0.3 %

NYSE BCE opened at $23.83 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $21.74 billion, a P/E ratio of 340.43, a P/E/G ratio of 3.92 and a beta of 0.56. 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 $40.99. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $24.38 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $30.13.

BCE Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 16th were given a dividend of $0.737 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 16th. This represents a $2.95 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 12.37%. This is a boost from BCE’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.73. BCE’s payout ratio is currently 4,028.57%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on BCE shares. Canaccord Genuity Group downgraded BCE from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. Morgan Stanley assumed coverage on shares of BCE in a report on Monday, December 16th. They issued an “underweight” rating for the company. Barclays restated an “underweight” rating on shares of BCE in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. Bank of America lowered shares of BCE from a “neutral” rating to an “underperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. Finally, Edward Jones downgraded shares of BCE from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating, one has assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average 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.