BCE (NYSE:BCE) Trading 0.5% Higher – Time to Buy?

BCE Inc. (NYSE:BCE) (TSE:BCE) shot up 0.5% on Thursday . The company traded as high as $23.58 and last traded at $23.52. 775,377 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 69% from the average session volume of 2,528,682 shares. The stock had previously closed at $23.40.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts recently commented on the stock. Edward Jones cut shares of BCE from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. Canaccord Genuity Group reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of BCE in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. National Bank Financial lowered BCE from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, September 30th. Canaccord Genuity Group downgraded shares of BCE from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets upped their price target on shares of BCE from $48.00 to $51.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Thursday, September 19th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating, one has given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $45.00.

BCE Stock Up 0.2 %

The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $28.53 and its 200-day simple moving average is $32.04. 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 stock has a market capitalization of $21.13 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 330.86, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.04 and a beta of 0.54.

BCE Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Investors of record on Monday, December 16th will be issued a dividend of $0.737 per share. This represents a $2.95 annualized dividend and a yield of 12.73%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 16th. This is a positive change from BCE’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.73. BCE’s dividend payout ratio is presently 4,214.29%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On BCE

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in BCE. DGS Capital Management LLC increased its position in BCE by 55.9% during the third quarter. DGS Capital Management LLC now owns 12,845 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $447,000 after buying an additional 4,605 shares during the last quarter. Logan Capital Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of BCE by 4.5% during the 3rd quarter. Logan Capital Management Inc. now owns 103,643 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $3,607,000 after acquiring an additional 4,438 shares during the last quarter. Old North State Trust LLC raised its stake in BCE by 25.2% in the 3rd quarter. Old North State Trust LLC now owns 7,786 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $271,000 after acquiring an additional 1,566 shares during the period. Tidal Investments LLC boosted its position in BCE by 138.1% during the third quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 14,884 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $518,000 after purchasing an additional 8,633 shares during the period. Finally, Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB acquired a new position in shares of BCE in the third quarter valued at $137,000. 41.46% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.