Sanctuary Advisors LLC Has $1.13 Million Stock Position in BCE Inc. (NYSE:BCE)

Sanctuary Advisors LLC lessened its holdings in BCE Inc. (NYSE:BCE) (TSE:BCE) by 44.4% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 32,551 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 26,009 shares during the period. Sanctuary Advisors LLC’s holdings in BCE were worth $1,133,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of BCE. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC boosted its holdings in shares of BCE by 121.2% during the 3rd quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC now owns 1,232 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $43,000 after buying an additional 675 shares during the period. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. bought a new stake in BCE during the third quarter valued at about $51,000. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC boosted its holdings in BCE by 321.0% during the third quarter. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC now owns 1,663 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $58,000 after acquiring an additional 1,268 shares during the period. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC acquired a new stake in shares of BCE in the third quarter valued at about $65,000. Finally, Fairscale Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of BCE in the second quarter worth about $76,000. 41.46% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

BCE Trading Up 0.2 %

Shares of BCE opened at $23.16 on Friday. 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 company has a market cap of $21.13 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 330.86, a PEG ratio of 4.04 and a beta of 0.54. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $28.53 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $32.03. BCE Inc. has a 52-week low of $22.90 and a 52-week high of $41.77.

BCE Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Investors of record on Monday, December 16th will be given a dividend of $0.737 per share. 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 12.73%. BCE’s dividend payout ratio is 4,214.29%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have issued reports on the company. Canaccord Genuity Group reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of BCE in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. Morgan Stanley started coverage on shares of BCE in a research note on Monday, December 16th. They issued an “underweight” rating on the stock. Barclays cut their target price on shares of BCE from $34.00 to $30.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, November 11th. BMO Capital Markets raised their price target on shares of BCE from $48.00 to $51.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 19th. Finally, National Bank Financial lowered shares of BCE from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, September 30th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating, one has given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, BCE has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $45.00.

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.