BCE (NYSE:BCE) Shares Up 1.6% – Should You Buy?

BCE Inc. (NYSE:BCE) (TSE:BCE) shares shot up 1.6% during mid-day trading on Thursday . The company traded as high as $23.61 and last traded at $23.64. 383,030 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 89% from the average session volume of 3,587,677 shares. The stock had previously closed at $23.26.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on BCE. Canaccord Genuity Group restated a “hold” rating on shares of BCE in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered shares of BCE from a “neutral” rating to an “underweight” rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Canaccord Genuity Group downgraded BCE from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on BCE in a report on Monday, December 16th. They set an “underweight” rating for the company. Finally, Barclays reaffirmed an “underweight” rating on shares of BCE in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, one has given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, BCE currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $40.50.

BCE Trading Up 1.4 %

The company has a quick ratio of 0.60, a current ratio of 0.62 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.26. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $23.76 and a 200 day simple moving average of $29.50. The company has a market cap of $21.52 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 196.54, a P/E/G ratio of 3.91 and a beta of 0.57.

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

BCE Cuts Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be given a $0.6965 dividend. This represents a $2.79 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 11.81%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. BCE’s dividend payout ratio is currently 2,350.00%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Allworth Financial LP increased its position in shares of BCE by 217.6% in the fourth quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 1,153 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 790 shares in the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. increased its position in BCE by 1,147.3% during the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,397 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 1,285 shares in the last quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. purchased a new stake in BCE during the 3rd quarter worth about $51,000. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC purchased a new stake in BCE during the 3rd quarter worth about $65,000. Finally, MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB increased its position in BCE by 67.6% during the 4th quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 1,981 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $46,000 after purchasing an additional 799 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 41.46% of the company’s stock.

BCE Company 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.