BCE (NYSE:BCE) Hits New 12-Month Low on Analyst Downgrade

BCE Inc. (NYSE:BCE) (TSE:BCE)’s stock price reached a new 52-week low during trading on Tuesday after Barclays lowered their price target on the stock from $34.00 to $30.00. Barclays currently has an equal weight rating on the stock. BCE traded as low as $27.29 and last traded at $27.34, with a volume of 563687 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $27.85.

Several other equities research analysts have also weighed in on BCE. Edward Jones lowered BCE from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. National Bank Financial downgraded shares of BCE from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, September 30th. Cibc World Mkts raised shares of BCE from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. BMO Capital Markets raised their price target on shares of BCE from $48.00 to $51.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, September 19th. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group downgraded BCE from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, one has assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, BCE has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $45.00.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On BCE

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Intact Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of BCE by 66.4% in the 3rd quarter. Intact Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,360,980 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $47,320,000 after buying an additional 543,320 shares in the last quarter. American Assets Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of BCE in the 3rd quarter valued at $2,262,000. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC grew its holdings in shares of BCE by 3,355.4% in the 3rd quarter. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC now owns 1,852,025 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $64,450,000 after purchasing an additional 1,798,427 shares during the last quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc increased its position in shares of BCE by 23.8% during the 2nd quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 5,520,090 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $178,677,000 after purchasing an additional 1,061,488 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Creative Planning lifted its holdings in BCE by 116.0% during the 2nd quarter. Creative Planning now owns 56,099 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,816,000 after purchasing an additional 30,125 shares during the last quarter. 41.46% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

BCE Stock Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 0.62, a current ratio of 0.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.00. The stock has a market capitalization of $25.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 387.57, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.26 and a beta of 0.59. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $33.46 and its 200 day simple moving average is $33.54.

BCE Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 16th will be issued a $0.737 dividend. This is an increase from BCE’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.73. This represents a $2.95 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 10.65%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 16th. BCE’s payout ratio is presently 4,228.57%.

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.