John G Ullman & Associates Inc. Grows Stake in BCE Inc. (NYSE:BCE)

John G Ullman & Associates Inc. raised its stake in BCE Inc. (NYSE:BCE - Free Report) TSE: BCE by 246.3% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 183,622 shares of the utilities provider's stock after acquiring an additional 130,599 shares during the period. John G Ullman & Associates Inc.'s holdings in BCE were worth $4,256,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. US Bancorp DE grew its stake in shares of BCE by 154.8% in the fourth quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 52,027 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $1,206,000 after acquiring an additional 31,607 shares during the last quarter. Davis Rea LTD. bought a new position in shares of BCE during the fourth quarter valued at $4,774,000. Lincluden Management Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of BCE by 17.3% during the fourth quarter. Lincluden Management Ltd. now owns 1,615,956 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $37,457,000 after purchasing an additional 237,903 shares in the last quarter. C2P Capital Advisory Group LLC d.b.a. Prosperity Capital Advisors bought a new position in shares of BCE during the fourth quarter valued at $104,000. Finally, Atria Wealth Solutions Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of BCE by 18.4% during the fourth quarter. Atria Wealth Solutions Inc. now owns 18,401 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $439,000 after purchasing an additional 2,863 shares in the last quarter. 41.46% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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BCE Stock Performance

BCE stock traded up $0.12 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $23.73. The stock had a trading volume of 1,757,164 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,242,609. BCE Inc. has a 52 week low of $21.87 and a 52 week high of $36.94. The stock's 50 day moving average is $23.44 and its two-hundred day moving average is $28.38. The company has a current ratio of 0.62, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.26. The firm has a market cap of $21.87 billion, a PE ratio of 197.72, a PEG ratio of 4.13 and a beta of 0.57.

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

BCE Cuts Dividend

The business 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 $0.6965 dividend. This represents a $2.79 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 11.74%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. BCE's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 2,291.67%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Canaccord Genuity Group downgraded BCE from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. Morgan Stanley assumed coverage on BCE in a report on Monday, December 16th. They set an "underweight" rating on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed a "sector perform" rating and set a $39.00 price target on shares of BCE in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. Bank of America downgraded BCE from a "neutral" rating to an "underperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. downgraded BCE from a "neutral" rating to an "underweight" rating in a report on Friday, February 7th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, one has assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, BCE presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $40.00.

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.