Allianz Asset Management GmbH Sells 14,025 Shares of BCE, Inc. (NYSE:BCE)

Allianz Asset Management GmbH trimmed its position in BCE, Inc. (NYSE:BCE - Free Report) TSE: BCE by 17.4% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 66,684 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 14,025 shares during the period. Allianz Asset Management GmbH's holdings in BCE were worth $1,530,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Bernard Wealth Management Corp. purchased a new stake in BCE in the fourth quarter worth $26,000. WealthCollab LLC purchased a new stake in BCE in the fourth quarter worth $27,000. GeoWealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in BCE in the fourth quarter worth $60,000. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB grew its stake in BCE by 67.1% in the first quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 3,310 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $76,000 after purchasing an additional 1,329 shares during the period. Finally, ORG Partners LLC grew its stake in BCE by 77.2% in the first quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 3,891 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $89,000 after purchasing an additional 1,695 shares during the period. 41.46% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. National Bank Financial raised BCE from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 3rd. Scotiabank raised BCE from a "sector perform" rating to a "sector outperform" rating in a report on Monday, June 2nd. Cibc World Mkts downgraded BCE from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, July 3rd. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada reissued a "sector perform" rating and issued a $35.00 target price on shares of BCE in a report on Wednesday, May 14th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating, one has issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $38.67.

BCE Stock Up 1.1%

BCE stock traded up $0.25 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $23.58. The company had a trading volume of 3,105,777 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,777,805. The company has a market capitalization of $21.99 billion, a PE ratio of 90.69, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.83 and a beta of 0.62. The company has a current ratio of 0.64, a quick ratio of 0.61 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.40. BCE, Inc. has a 12 month low of $20.28 and a 12 month high of $36.17. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $22.78 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $22.78.

BCE (NYSE:BCE - Get Free Report) TSE: BCE last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 8th. The utilities provider reported $0.48 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.44 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $4.12 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.92 billion. BCE had a return on equity of 19.22% and a net margin of 1.82%. The company's quarterly revenue was down 1.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.75 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that BCE, Inc. will post 1.94 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

BCE Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently declared a dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, July 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, June 17th were issued a dividend of $0.4375 per share. This represents a dividend yield of 565.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 16th. BCE's dividend payout ratio is presently 488.46%.

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.