BCE (NYSE:BCE) Stock Price Up 0.7% – Still a Buy?

BCE Inc. (NYSE:BCE) (TSE:BCE)’s stock price rose 0.7% during mid-day trading on Friday . The company traded as high as $23.41 and last traded at $23.38. Approximately 315,409 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 90% from the average daily volume of 3,228,094 shares. The stock had previously closed at $23.22.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

BCE has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Barclays reiterated an “underweight” rating on shares of BCE in a research note on Tuesday. Edward Jones downgraded BCE from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. Canaccord Genuity Group reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of BCE in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. Bank of America downgraded BCE from a “neutral” rating to an “underperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group downgraded BCE from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. Three research 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 company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $45.00.

BCE Stock Up 1.1 %

The firm has a market capitalization of $21.42 billion, a PE ratio of 335.36, a PEG ratio of 3.83 and a beta of 0.56. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $24.70 and a 200-day moving average price of $30.41. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.26, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a current ratio of 0.62.

BCE Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 16th were issued a dividend of $0.737 per share. This represents a $2.95 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 12.56%. This is a boost from BCE’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.73. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 16th. BCE’s dividend payout ratio is 4,028.57%.

Institutional Trading of BCE

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. AE Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in BCE by 2.6% during the 2nd quarter. AE Wealth Management LLC now owns 14,383 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $466,000 after buying an additional 367 shares during the period. Public Sector Pension Investment Board grew its position in shares of BCE by 3.7% during the 2nd quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 76,469 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $2,476,000 after buying an additional 2,700 shares in the last quarter. Evergreen Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of BCE during the 2nd quarter worth $245,000. BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp grew its position in shares of BCE by 185.1% during the 2nd quarter. BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp now owns 127,546 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $4,132,000 after buying an additional 82,803 shares in the last quarter. Finally, APG Asset Management N.V. grew its position in shares of BCE by 14.3% during the 2nd quarter. APG Asset Management N.V. now owns 1,420,769 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $42,927,000 after buying an additional 178,031 shares in the last quarter. 41.46% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.