Quantinno Capital Management LP Boosts Holdings in BCE Inc. (NYSE:BCE)

Quantinno Capital Management LP boosted its holdings in BCE Inc. (NYSE:BCE - Free Report) TSE: BCE by 180.4% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 47,459 shares of the utilities provider's stock after purchasing an additional 30,532 shares during the quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP's holdings in BCE were worth $1,652,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Polar Asset Management Partners Inc. bought a new position in shares of BCE in the 3rd quarter worth $498,000. Ingalls & Snyder LLC grew its holdings in shares of BCE by 5.9% during the third quarter. Ingalls & Snyder LLC now owns 35,185 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $1,224,000 after buying an additional 1,955 shares during the last quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of 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 acquiring an additional 4,970 shares in the last quarter. Centiva Capital LP raised its holdings in shares of BCE by 100.6% in the 3rd quarter. Centiva Capital LP now owns 20,481 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $713,000 after acquiring an additional 10,273 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Benjamin Edwards Inc. bought a new position in BCE in the 3rd quarter valued at about $802,000. 41.46% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

BCE Price Performance

Shares of BCE stock traded down $0.14 during trading on Thursday, hitting $25.83. The company had a trading volume of 5,024,321 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,466,147. BCE Inc. has a 52 week low of $25.57 and a 52 week high of $41.77. The stock has a market capitalization of $23.56 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 366.29, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.17 and a beta of 0.54. 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 stock's 50-day moving average is $29.83 and its two-hundred day moving average is $32.51.

BCE Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 16th will be given a dividend of $0.737 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 16th. This represents a $2.95 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 11.42%. This is a boost from BCE's previous quarterly dividend of $0.73. BCE's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 4,214.29%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

BCE has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price objective on shares of BCE from $48.00 to $51.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a report on Thursday, September 19th. Edward Jones downgraded shares of BCE from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. Barclays dropped their target price on shares of BCE from $34.00 to $30.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, November 11th. National Bank Financial downgraded BCE from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, September 30th. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group cut BCE from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with 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 currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $45.00.

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.