BCE (NYSE:BCE) Stock Price Up 0.2% – Here’s Why

BCE Inc. (NYSE:BCE) (TSE:BCE)’s share price rose 0.2% during trading on Monday . The stock traded as high as $23.01 and last traded at $23.00. Approximately 499,271 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 83% from the average daily volume of 2,969,163 shares. The stock had previously closed at $22.96.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

BCE has been the topic of several research analyst reports. National Bank Financial downgraded BCE from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, September 30th. Canaccord Genuity Group downgraded BCE from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. Barclays dropped their price target on BCE from $34.00 to $30.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, November 11th. Bank of America downgraded BCE from a “neutral” rating to an “underperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, Morgan Stanley started coverage on BCE in a research note on Monday, December 16th. They issued an “underweight” rating on the stock. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating, one has issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, BCE presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $45.00.

BCE Trading Up 1.6 %

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 business has a 50-day moving average of $25.36 and a 200-day moving average of $30.81. The firm has a market cap of $20.88 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 327.00, a P/E/G ratio of 4.04 and a beta of 0.56.

BCE Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Investors of record on Monday, December 16th will be given a $0.737 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 16th. This represents a $2.95 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 12.88%. This is an increase from BCE’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.73. BCE’s payout ratio is currently 4,028.57%.

Institutional Trading of BCE

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC increased its position in shares of BCE by 121.2% in the third quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC now owns 1,232 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $43,000 after acquiring an additional 675 shares during the last quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. bought a new position in BCE during the third quarter worth about $51,000. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC grew its holdings in BCE by 321.0% during 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 during the period. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC bought a new position in BCE during the third quarter worth about $65,000. Finally, Fairscale Capital LLC bought a new position in BCE during the second quarter worth about $76,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 41.46% of the company’s stock.

BCE Company 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.