Avantax Advisory Services Inc. Boosts Stake in BCE, Inc. (NYSE:BCE)

Key Points

• Avantax Advisory Services Inc. increased its stake in BCE, Inc. by 649.7% in the first quarter, now holding 66,577 shares valued at approximately $1.53 million.
• BCE has been rated by multiple analysts, with four giving it a sell rating, while others maintain it at "hold" or upgrade it to "strong-buy."
• The company recently cut its dividend, with a payout ratio of 488.46%, which paid out $0.4375 per share on July 15th.

Avantax Advisory Services Inc. raised its position in shares of BCE, Inc. (NYSE:BCE - Free Report) TSE: BCE by 649.7% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 66,577 shares of the utilities provider's stock after acquiring an additional 57,696 shares during the quarter. Avantax Advisory Services Inc.'s holdings in BCE were worth $1,529,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board raised its holdings in BCE by 623.9% in the 4th quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 9,398,336 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $217,573,000 after acquiring an additional 8,100,000 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new position in BCE in the 4th quarter worth approximately $87,643,000. Bank of Nova Scotia raised its holdings in BCE by 22.2% in the 4th quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia now owns 19,945,799 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $462,262,000 after acquiring an additional 3,624,953 shares during the last quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank raised its holdings in BCE by 34.4% in the 4th quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank now owns 10,569,646 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $244,692,000 after acquiring an additional 2,706,839 shares during the last quarter. Finally, FIL Ltd raised its holdings in BCE by 9.7% in the 4th quarter. FIL Ltd now owns 26,292,783 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $609,465,000 after acquiring an additional 2,322,474 shares during the last quarter. 41.46% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

BCE Stock Performance

BCE traded up $0.49 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $23.80. 1,392,416 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,260,852. The stock has a market capitalization of $22.19 billion, a P/E ratio of 91.71, a P/E/G ratio of 3.87 and a beta of 0.62. The company has a quick ratio of 0.61, a current ratio of 0.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.40. The company's fifty day moving average price is $22.86 and its 200-day moving average price is $22.79. BCE, Inc. has a 52-week low of $20.28 and a 52-week high of $36.17.

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

BCE Cuts Dividend

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

BCE has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Royal Bank Of Canada restated a "sector perform" rating and issued a $35.00 price objective on shares of BCE in a report on Wednesday, May 14th. Scotiabank upgraded shares of BCE from a "sector perform" rating to a "sector outperform" rating in a report on Monday, June 2nd. Finally, Cibc World Mkts lowered shares of BCE from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, July 3rd. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating, one has assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, BCE currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $38.67.

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.