BCE Inc. (NYSE:BCE) Shares Acquired by AlphaMark Advisors LLC

AlphaMark Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of BCE Inc. (NYSE:BCE) (TSE:BCE) by 640.0% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 2,960 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after buying an additional 2,560 shares during the quarter. AlphaMark Advisors LLC’s holdings in BCE were worth $69,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of BCE. Caldwell Sutter Capital Inc. raised its position in shares of BCE by 3.9% in the third quarter. Caldwell Sutter Capital Inc. now owns 11,856 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $413,000 after buying an additional 445 shares during the last quarter. First Affirmative Financial Network raised its holdings in BCE by 6.1% in the 3rd quarter. First Affirmative Financial Network now owns 8,181 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $285,000 after acquiring an additional 472 shares during the last quarter. Prospera Financial Services Inc lifted its stake in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 478 shares during the period. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC boosted its holdings in shares of BCE by 1.2% during the fourth quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 43,402 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,006,000 after purchasing an additional 520 shares during the last quarter. Finally, FMR LLC grew its position in shares of BCE by 6.8% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 9,307 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $324,000 after purchasing an additional 596 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 41.46% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have issued reports on BCE shares. Bank of America lowered BCE from a “neutral” rating to an “underperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. Edward Jones downgraded shares of BCE from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. Canaccord Genuity Group reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of BCE in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. Barclays reissued an “underweight” rating on shares of BCE in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. Finally, Morgan Stanley assumed coverage on BCE in a research report on Monday, December 16th. They issued an “underweight” rating on the stock. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating, one has assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, BCE has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $45.00.

BCE Stock Up 1.3 %

Shares of BCE stock opened at $23.53 on Monday. BCE Inc. has a twelve month low of $21.87 and a twelve month high of $41.15. The stock has a market cap of $21.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 336.07, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.83 and a beta of 0.56. 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 company has a fifty day moving average price of $24.63 and a 200 day moving average price of $30.34.

BCE Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 16th were given a $0.737 dividend. This is an increase from BCE’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.73. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 16th. This represents a $2.95 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 12.53%. 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.