Capital Advisors Inc. OK Purchases 48,997 Shares of BCE Inc. (NYSE:BCE)

Capital Advisors Inc. OK increased its position in shares of BCE Inc. (NYSE:BCE) (TSE:BCE) by 9.5% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 562,433 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 48,997 shares during the quarter. Capital Advisors Inc. OK owned about 0.06% of BCE worth $13,037,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Caldwell Sutter Capital Inc. boosted its stake in BCE by 3.9% during the 3rd quarter. Caldwell Sutter Capital Inc. now owns 11,856 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $413,000 after acquiring an additional 445 shares during the last quarter. Prospera Financial Services Inc boosted its stake in BCE by 6.8% during the 3rd quarter. Prospera Financial Services Inc now owns 7,534 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $262,000 after acquiring an additional 478 shares during the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC boosted its stake in BCE by 1.2% during the 4th quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 43,402 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,006,000 after acquiring an additional 520 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC boosted its stake in BCE by 6.8% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 9,307 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $324,000 after acquiring an additional 596 shares during the last quarter. Finally, State Street Corp boosted its stake in BCE by 0.5% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 148,741 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $5,286,000 after acquiring an additional 749 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 41.46% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have weighed in on BCE shares. Edward Jones lowered shares of BCE from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note 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. Canaccord Genuity Group reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of BCE in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. Barclays reaffirmed an “underweight” rating on shares of BCE in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group lowered shares of BCE from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating, one has given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, BCE presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $40.50.

BCE Price Performance

NYSE BCE opened at $22.88 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.60, a current ratio of 0.62 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.26. BCE Inc. has a 12-month low of $21.87 and a 12-month high of $38.21. The company has a market capitalization of $20.87 billion, a PE ratio of 190.63, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.91 and a beta of 0.57. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $23.92 and its 200-day moving average is $29.62.

BCE (NYSE:BCE) (TSE:BCE) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The utilities provider reported $0.56 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.53 by $0.03. BCE had a net margin of 0.99% and a return on equity of 17.89%. Equities research analysts anticipate that BCE Inc. will post 2 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

BCE Cuts Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be issued a $0.6965 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. This represents a $2.79 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 12.18%. BCE’s dividend payout ratio is currently 2,283.33%.

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.