Northwest & Ethical Investments L.P. Has $7.74 Million Stock Holdings in BCE, Inc. $BCE

Key Points

• Northwest & Ethical Investments L.P. increased its stake in BCE, Inc. by 11.3% to 336,856 shares, which amounted to a value of $7.7 million at the end of the reporting period.
• BCE's recent quarterly earnings reported an EPS of $0.46, missing analysts' expectations and showing a 1.3% year-over-year revenue increase.
• The company announced a dividend of $0.4375 per share, reflecting a substantial yield but indicating a high dividend payout ratio of 437.93%.

Northwest & Ethical Investments L.P. boosted its position in BCE, Inc. (NYSE:BCE - Free Report) TSE: BCE by 11.3% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 336,856 shares of the utilities provider's stock after acquiring an additional 34,270 shares during the quarter. Northwest & Ethical Investments L.P.'s holdings in BCE were worth $7,736,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in shares of BCE during the fourth quarter valued at $8,233,000. Barclays PLC raised its stake in shares of BCE by 145.0% during the fourth quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 295,190 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $6,841,000 after acquiring an additional 174,728 shares during the last quarter. Mariner LLC raised its stake in shares of BCE by 18.7% during the fourth quarter. Mariner LLC now owns 54,558 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $1,265,000 after acquiring an additional 8,608 shares during the last quarter. Guggenheim Capital LLC raised its stake in shares of BCE by 99.5% during the fourth quarter. Guggenheim Capital LLC now owns 45,784 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $1,061,000 after acquiring an additional 22,833 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bridgewater Associates LP raised its stake in shares of BCE by 4.7% during the fourth quarter. Bridgewater Associates LP now owns 13,655 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $316,000 after acquiring an additional 614 shares during the last quarter. 41.46% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

BCE has been the subject of several analyst reports. Desjardins raised shares of BCE from a "hold" rating to a "moderate buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 5th. Royal Bank Of Canada reaffirmed a "sector perform" rating and set a $35.00 price target on shares of BCE in a research note on Wednesday, May 14th. Scotiabank upgraded shares of BCE from a "sector perform" rating to a "sector outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, June 2nd. Cibc World Mkts cut shares of BCE from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 3rd. Finally, TD Securities reiterated a "hold" rating on shares of BCE in a research report on Friday, August 8th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have assigned a Buy rating, seven have assigned a Hold rating and four have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $38.67.

BCE Stock Down 1.0%

NYSE BCE traded down $0.2530 on Friday, hitting $25.4670. 3,574,328 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,162,978. The company has a market cap of $23.75 billion, a PE ratio of 87.82, a PEG ratio of 4.32 and a beta of 0.62. BCE, Inc. has a 12 month low of $20.28 and a 12 month high of $36.17. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $23.64 and a 200-day moving average of $22.91. The company has a current ratio of 0.61, a quick ratio of 0.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.17.

BCE (NYSE:BCE - Get Free Report) TSE: BCE last issued its earnings results on Thursday, August 7th. The utilities provider reported $0.46 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.52 by ($0.06). The company had revenue of $4.47 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.91 billion. BCE had a return on equity of 18.89% and a net margin of 1.96%.The firm's revenue was up 1.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.78 earnings per share. BCE has set its FY 2025 guidance at 1.910-1.980 EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that BCE, Inc. will post 1.94 earnings per share for the current year.

BCE Cuts Dividend

The company also recently disclosed 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. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 16th. This represents a dividend yield of 565.0%. BCE's payout ratio is currently 434.48%.

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.