Beverly Hills Private Wealth LLC Buys 19,641 Shares of BCE Inc. (NYSE:BCE)

Beverly Hills Private Wealth LLC raised its position in BCE Inc. (NYSE:BCE) (TSE:BCE) by 116.4% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 36,508 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after buying an additional 19,641 shares during the quarter. Beverly Hills Private Wealth LLC’s holdings in BCE were worth $1,534,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of BCE by 88.0% during the 2nd quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC now owns 579 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 271 shares during the period. Tucker Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of BCE during the 1st quarter valued at $39,000. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. increased its holdings in shares of BCE by 45.8% in the second quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. now owns 1,115 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $51,000 after purchasing an additional 350 shares during the period. TCTC Holdings LLC increased its stake in BCE by 33.3% in the 1st quarter. TCTC Holdings LLC now owns 1,242 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $56,000 after acquiring an additional 310 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Ellevest Inc. bought a new stake in shares of BCE during the 1st quarter valued at about $73,000. 42.30% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on BCE shares. Canaccord Genuity Group decreased their price target on shares of BCE from $63.00 to $61.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, July 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on BCE from $62.00 to $59.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, October 18th. Canaccord Genuity Group raised BCE from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, October 23rd. TheStreet cut shares of BCE from a “b” rating to a “c+” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 3rd. Finally, TD Securities downgraded shares of BCE from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, September 1st. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $60.43.

BCE Price Performance

Shares of BCE stock opened at $39.50 on Wednesday. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $38.66 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $42.44. BCE Inc. has a 12-month low of $36.15 and a 12-month high of $48.38. The firm has a market cap of $36.03 billion, a PE ratio of 21.82, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.50 and a beta of 0.62. The company has a quick ratio of 0.52, a current ratio of 0.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.68.

BCE Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 15th. Investors of record on Friday, December 15th will be paid a $0.6969 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, December 14th. This represents a $2.79 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 7.06%. BCE’s payout ratio is presently 158.01%.

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 three segments: Bell Wireless, Bell Wireline, and Bell Media. The Bell Wireless segment offers integrated digital wireless voice and data communication products and services, as well as consumer electronics products.