Euro Pacific Asset Management LLC Trims Stake in BCE Inc. (NYSE:BCE)

Euro Pacific Asset Management LLC lessened its holdings in BCE Inc. (NYSE:BCE) (TSE:BCE) by 9.2% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 66,681 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 6,730 shares during the quarter. Euro Pacific Asset Management LLC’s holdings in BCE were worth $1,566,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC boosted its position 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 valued at $43,000 after acquiring an additional 675 shares during the last quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB raised its stake in BCE by 67.6% in the fourth quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 1,981 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $46,000 after purchasing an additional 799 shares in the last quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. bought a new stake in BCE during the third quarter valued at approximately $51,000. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC grew its stake in BCE by 321.0% in the 3rd quarter. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC now owns 1,663 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $58,000 after buying an additional 1,268 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Legacy Investment Solutions LLC bought a new position in shares of BCE in the 3rd quarter worth $65,000. 41.46% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on BCE. Bank of America lowered shares of BCE from a “neutral” rating to an “underperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on BCE in a report on Monday, December 16th. They issued an “underweight” rating for the company. Edward Jones cut BCE from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. Canaccord Genuity Group lowered BCE from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. Finally, National Bank Financial downgraded shares of BCE from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, September 30th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating, one has issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $45.00.

BCE Stock Performance

Shares of BCE stock opened at $23.53 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $21.46 billion, a P/E ratio of 336.07, a PEG ratio of 3.83 and a beta of 0.56. BCE Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $21.87 and a fifty-two week high of $41.15. 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 stock has a 50 day moving average price of $24.70 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $30.41.

BCE Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 16th were given a dividend of $0.737 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 16th. This represents a $2.95 annualized dividend and a yield of 12.53%. This is a boost from BCE’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.73. BCE’s dividend payout ratio is presently 4,028.57%.

BCE 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.