BCE (NYSE:BCE) Stock Rating Lowered by Canaccord Genuity Group

BCE (NYSE:BCE) (TSE:BCE) was downgraded by investment analysts at Canaccord Genuity Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report released on Tuesday, MarketBeat Ratings reports.

A number of other research analysts also recently weighed in on BCE. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price target on BCE from $48.00 to $51.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Thursday, September 19th. Barclays decreased their price objective on BCE from $35.00 to $34.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. Edward Jones downgraded BCE from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday. National Bank Financial lowered shares of BCE from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, September 30th. Finally, Cibc World Mkts raised shares of BCE from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, one has assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, BCE currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $46.33.

BCE Trading Down 0.3 %

BCE stock opened at $28.74 on Tuesday. BCE has a 52 week low of $28.26 and a 52 week high of $41.77. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.00, a quick ratio of 0.62 and a current ratio of 0.65. The firm has a market capitalization of $26.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.08, a P/E/G ratio of 5.36 and a beta of 0.59. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $33.87 and a 200 day moving average price of $33.64.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On BCE

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Atlanta Consulting Group Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of BCE in the 3rd quarter valued at $766,000. Natixis Advisors LLC raised its holdings in BCE by 8.3% during the third quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 346,698 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $12,065,000 after buying an additional 26,610 shares in the last quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. lifted its position in shares of BCE by 19.4% in the third quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. now owns 51,205 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,782,000 after buying an additional 8,335 shares during the last quarter. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of BCE by 2.7% during the 3rd quarter. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. now owns 495,054 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $17,228,000 after acquiring an additional 13,032 shares in the last quarter. Finally, American Assets Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of BCE during the 3rd quarter valued at about $2,262,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.