Avantax Advisory Services Inc. Has $1.53 Million 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. lifted its stake in BCE, Inc. (NYSE:BCE - Free Report) TSE: BCE by 649.7% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 66,577 shares of the utilities provider's stock after purchasing an additional 57,696 shares during the period. Avantax Advisory Services Inc.'s holdings in BCE were worth $1,529,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Bernard Wealth Management Corp. purchased a new position in BCE during the fourth quarter worth $26,000. WealthCollab LLC purchased a new stake in BCE during the 4th quarter worth $27,000. GeoWealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in BCE in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $60,000. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB increased its stake in BCE by 67.1% during the 1st quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 3,310 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $76,000 after buying an additional 1,329 shares during the period. Finally, ORG Partners LLC boosted its position in BCE by 77.2% in the 1st quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 3,891 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $89,000 after buying an additional 1,695 shares during the last quarter. 41.46% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

BCE Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:BCE traded up $0.25 during trading on Friday, reaching $23.58. The stock had a trading volume of 3,105,777 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,777,805. BCE, Inc. has a 52 week low of $20.28 and a 52 week high of $36.17. The stock has a market capitalization of $21.99 billion, a PE ratio of 90.69, a P/E/G ratio of 3.87 and a beta of 0.62. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.40, a current ratio of 0.64 and a quick ratio of 0.61. The business's 50-day moving average price is $22.82 and its 200 day moving average price is $22.79.

BCE (NYSE:BCE - Get Free Report) TSE: BCE last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 8th. The utilities provider reported $0.48 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.44 by $0.04. BCE had a net margin of 1.82% and a return on equity of 19.22%. The business had revenue of $4.12 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.92 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.75 EPS. BCE's quarterly revenue was down 1.3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts predict that BCE, Inc. will post 1.94 earnings per share for the current year.

BCE Cuts Dividend

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

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