Franklin Resources Inc. Reduces Holdings in BCE Inc. (NYSE:BCE)

Franklin Resources Inc. trimmed its position in BCE Inc. (NYSE:BCE - Free Report) TSE: BCE by 13.6% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 283,671 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 44,502 shares during the quarter. Franklin Resources Inc.'s holdings in BCE were worth $6,567,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. FMR LLC increased its holdings in shares of BCE by 6.8% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 9,307 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $324,000 after buying an additional 596 shares in the last quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets boosted its position in BCE by 14.8% during the third quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 25,977 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $904,000 after acquiring an additional 3,352 shares during the last quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC grew its stake in BCE by 9.0% during the third quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 60,123 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $2,096,000 after purchasing an additional 4,970 shares during the period. Quantinno Capital Management LP increased its stake in shares of BCE by 180.4% in the 3rd quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 47,459 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $1,652,000 after acquiring an additional 30,532 shares in the last quarter. Finally, State Street Corp raised its holdings in shares of BCE by 0.5% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 148,741 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $5,286,000 after purchasing an additional 749 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 41.46% of the company's stock.

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BCE Price Performance

BCE stock traded down $0.23 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $21.43. 753,298 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,784,575. The stock has a market capitalization of $19.75 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 178.66, a PEG ratio of 4.13 and a beta of 0.56. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $23.06 and a 200 day moving average price of $25.80. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.26, a current ratio of 0.62 and a quick ratio of 0.60. BCE Inc. has a 12 month low of $20.28 and a 12 month high of $36.17.

BCE (NYSE:BCE - Get Free Report) TSE: BCE last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The utilities provider reported $0.56 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.53 by $0.03. BCE had a return on equity of 17.89% and a net margin of 0.99%. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that BCE Inc. will post 1.94 EPS for the current year.

BCE Cuts Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be paid a dividend of $0.6965 per share. This represents a $2.79 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 13.00%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. BCE's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 2,291.67%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have commented on the stock. Bank of America lowered shares of BCE from a "neutral" rating to an "underperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. Barclays restated an "underweight" rating on shares of BCE in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered shares of BCE from a "neutral" rating to an "underweight" rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. National Bank Financial upgraded shares of BCE from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 3rd. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a "sector perform" rating and set a $39.00 price objective on shares of BCE in a research note on Tuesday, February 25th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, one has issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $40.00.

BCE 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.