BCE (NYSE:BCE) Stock Price Down 1.5% – What’s Next?

BCE Inc. (NYSE:BCE) (TSE:BCE) shares were down 1.5% during trading on Monday . The stock traded as low as $22.18 and last traded at $22.31. Approximately 780,388 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 70% from the average daily volume of 2,563,413 shares. The stock had previously closed at $22.66.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the company. BMO Capital Markets increased their price target on BCE from $48.00 to $51.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 19th. Canaccord Genuity Group reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of BCE in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. Barclays lowered their price target on shares of BCE from $34.00 to $30.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, November 11th. Edward Jones cut shares of BCE from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group cut BCE from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating, one has assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $45.00.

BCE Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.26, a current ratio of 0.62 and a quick ratio of 0.60. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $27.48 and a 200 day moving average price of $31.61. The firm has a market cap of $20.62 billion, a PE ratio of 322.86, a PEG ratio of 4.04 and a beta of 0.54.

BCE Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 16th will be paid a $0.737 dividend. This represents a $2.95 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 13.04%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 16th. This is a boost from BCE’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.73. BCE’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 4,214.29%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On BCE

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in BCE. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC lifted its holdings in shares of BCE by 121.2% in the 3rd quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC now owns 1,232 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $43,000 after buying an additional 675 shares during the period. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. purchased a new position in BCE in the third quarter worth $51,000. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC lifted its holdings in BCE by 321.0% in 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 purchased a new stake in shares of BCE during the 3rd quarter worth $65,000. Finally, Fairscale Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of BCE during the 2nd quarter worth $76,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 41.46% of the company’s stock.

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.