BCE (NYSE:BCE) Shares Up 0.4% – Time to Buy?

BCE Inc. (NYSE:BCE) (TSE:BCE) shot up 0.4% during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $22.59 and last traded at $22.60. 523,726 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 85% from the average session volume of 3,610,732 shares. The stock had previously closed at $22.51.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

BCE has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Edward Jones lowered shares of BCE from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. Morgan Stanley started coverage on BCE in a research report on Monday, December 16th. They issued an “underweight” rating on the stock. Canaccord Genuity Group cut BCE from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered BCE from a “neutral” rating to an “underweight” rating in a research note on Friday. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group reissued a “hold” rating on shares of BCE in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating, one has given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $40.50.

BCE Stock Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $20.91 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 190.87, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.91 and a beta of 0.57. The company has a quick ratio of 0.60, a current ratio of 0.62 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.26. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $23.92 and a 200-day simple moving average of $29.62.

BCE (NYSE:BCE) (TSE:BCE) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The utilities provider reported $0.56 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.53 by $0.03. BCE had a net margin of 0.99% and a return on equity of 17.89%. As a group, equities research analysts expect that BCE Inc. will post 2 EPS for the current fiscal year.

BCE Cuts Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be paid a $0.6965 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. This represents a $2.79 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 12.15%. BCE’s dividend payout ratio is presently 2,350.00%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On BCE

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. National Bank of Canada FI increased its stake in BCE by 4.8% during the 3rd quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 18,873,961 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $656,421,000 after purchasing an additional 864,472 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its position in shares of BCE by 2.9% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 6,028,888 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $139,734,000 after acquiring an additional 168,704 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its holdings in shares of BCE by 25.3% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 3,657,533 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $127,282,000 after acquiring an additional 738,656 shares during the last quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. lifted its position in BCE by 48.7% in the 3rd 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 acquiring an additional 1,166,800 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Intact Investment Management Inc. boosted its stake in BCE by 42.9% during the 4th quarter. Intact Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,945,270 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $45,085,000 after purchasing an additional 584,290 shares during the last quarter. 41.46% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.