BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp Purchases 104,967 Shares of BCE, Inc. $BCE

Key Points

• BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp increased its holdings in BCE, Inc. by 26.1%, now owning approximately 507,230 shares worth $11.6 million.
• BCE's recent quarterly earnings revealed an EPS of $0.46, missing the consensus estimate and a 1.3% revenue increase year-over-year.
• The company announced a dividend yield of 565.0% with a high payout ratio of 437.93%, highlighting potential financial strain.

BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp raised its position in shares of BCE, Inc. (NYSE:BCE - Free Report) TSE: BCE by 26.1% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 507,230 shares of the utilities provider's stock after purchasing an additional 104,967 shares during the quarter. BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp owned 0.06% of BCE worth $11,644,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in BCE. Fiduciary Alliance LLC increased its position in BCE by 5.2% during the first quarter. Fiduciary Alliance LLC now owns 10,448 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $240,000 after acquiring an additional 519 shares during the last quarter. Transcend Capital Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of BCE by 7.8% in the 1st quarter. Transcend Capital Advisors LLC now owns 11,332 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $260,000 after acquiring an additional 816 shares during the last quarter. Kingsview Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of BCE by 10.3% during the 1st quarter. Kingsview Wealth Management LLC now owns 9,776 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $224,000 after purchasing an additional 916 shares during the period. Townsquare Capital LLC grew its holdings in BCE by 10.2% during the 1st quarter. Townsquare Capital LLC now owns 11,131 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $256,000 after purchasing an additional 1,029 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bernard Wealth Management Corp. purchased a new stake in BCE in the 4th quarter worth about $26,000. Institutional investors own 41.46% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have issued reports on BCE. National Bankshares restated an "outperform" rating on shares of BCE in a research report on Friday, August 15th. Cibc World Mkts cut BCE from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, July 3rd. Scotiabank raised BCE from a "sector perform" rating to a "sector outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, June 2nd. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated a "sector perform" rating and issued a $35.00 target price on shares of BCE in a research note on Wednesday, May 14th. Finally, Desjardins upgraded shares of BCE from a "hold" rating to a "moderate buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, August 5th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have given a Buy rating, eight have given a Hold rating and four have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $38.67.

BCE Stock Up 0.6%

NYSE:BCE traded up $0.16 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $24.98. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,222,312 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,291,357. The company has a market capitalization of $23.29 billion, a P/E ratio of 86.13, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.19 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 company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.17, a quick ratio of 0.57 and a current ratio of 0.61. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $23.88 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $22.96.

BCE (NYSE:BCE - Get Free Report) TSE: BCE last announced 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). BCE had a net margin of 1.96% and a return on equity of 18.89%. The company had revenue of $4.47 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.91 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.78 EPS. The firm's revenue was up 1.3% compared to the same quarter last year. BCE has set its FY 2025 guidance at 1.910-1.980 EPS. Equities analysts predict that BCE, Inc. will post 1.94 EPS for the current fiscal year.

BCE Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 15th. Investors of record on Monday, September 15th will be given a dividend of $0.4375 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 15th. This represents a $1.75 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 7.0%. BCE's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 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.