BCE (NYSE:BCE) Stock Price Down 1.2% - Here's What Happened

BCE Inc. (NYSE:BCE - Get Free Report) TSE: BCE shares fell 1.2% during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The company traded as low as $26.12 and last traded at $26.15. 997,938 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 59% from the average session volume of 2,442,562 shares. The stock had previously closed at $26.46.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

BCE has been the subject of a number of research reports. Barclays reduced their price objective on BCE from $34.00 to $30.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, November 11th. Canaccord Genuity Group downgraded BCE from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. Canaccord Genuity Group reiterated a "hold" rating on shares of BCE in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. BMO Capital Markets raised their price objective on BCE from $48.00 to $51.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research report on Thursday, September 19th. Finally, Edward Jones 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 given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $45.00.

BCE Trading Down 1.4 %

The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $30.00 and a 200-day simple moving average of $32.55. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.26, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a current ratio of 0.62. The stock has a market cap of $23.81 billion, a P/E ratio of 373.57, a P/E/G ratio of 4.17 and a beta of 0.54.

BCE Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 16th will be given a $0.737 dividend. This is an increase from BCE's previous quarterly dividend of $0.73. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 16th. This represents a $2.95 annualized dividend and a yield of 11.30%. BCE's payout ratio is presently 4,214.29%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On BCE

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC increased its stake 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 valued at $64,450,000 after buying an additional 1,798,427 shares during the period. AGF Management Ltd. increased its stake in shares of BCE by 5,036.0% in the 2nd quarter. AGF Management Ltd. now owns 1,354,413 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $43,842,000 after buying an additional 1,328,042 shares during the period. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. increased its stake in shares of 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 buying an additional 1,166,800 shares during the period. CIBC Asset Management Inc increased its stake in shares of BCE by 23.8% in the 2nd quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 5,520,090 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $178,677,000 after buying an additional 1,061,488 shares during the period. Finally, Toronto Dominion Bank increased its stake in shares of BCE by 12.0% in the 2nd quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank now owns 8,450,810 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $273,553,000 after buying an additional 905,857 shares during the period. Institutional investors 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.

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