The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company Has $49 Million Stock Holdings in BCE, Inc. $BCE

Key Points

• The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company has reduced its holdings in BCE, Inc. by 36.0%, selling over 1.19 million shares during the first quarter, and now owns 0.23% of the company valued at approximately $48.99 million.
• BCE recently reported $0.46 earnings per share for the quarter, which fell short of analysts' expectations, and its revenue of $4.47 billion was also below estimates of $5.91 billion.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.4375 per share, yielding 7.0%, with a remarkable dividend payout ratio of 434.48%.

The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company lowered its stake in BCE, Inc. (NYSE:BCE - Free Report) TSE: BCE by 36.0% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 2,123,095 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 1,194,196 shares during the period. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company owned approximately 0.23% of BCE worth $48,997,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Magnetar Financial LLC acquired a new position in BCE in the 1st quarter valued at about $693,000. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board grew its stake in BCE by 50.9% in the 1st quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 14,181,568 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $325,559,000 after buying an additional 4,783,232 shares during the last quarter. Lansforsakringar Fondforvaltning AB publ grew its stake in BCE by 2.0% in the 1st quarter. Lansforsakringar Fondforvaltning AB publ now owns 23,843 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $547,000 after buying an additional 475 shares during the last quarter. OMERS ADMINISTRATION Corp acquired a new position in BCE in the 1st quarter valued at about $2,938,000. Finally, Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec grew its stake in BCE by 36.1% in the 1st quarter. Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec now owns 25,249,300 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $579,458,000 after buying an additional 6,697,900 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 41.46% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have issued reports on the stock. TD Securities restated a "hold" rating on shares of BCE in a research report on Friday, August 8th. Scotiabank upgraded shares of BCE from a "sector perform" rating to a "sector outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, June 2nd. National Bankshares restated an "outperform" rating on shares of BCE in a research report on Friday, August 15th. Royal Bank Of Canada restated a "sector perform" rating and set a $35.00 target price on shares of BCE in a research report on Wednesday, May 14th. Finally, Desjardins upgraded shares of BCE from a "hold" rating to a "moderate buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 5th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have assigned a Buy rating, eight have given a Hold rating and four have given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, BCE has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $38.67.

BCE Price Performance

Shares of BCE stock traded up $0.23 on Friday, reaching $24.70. 2,189,198 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,062,674. The firm's 50 day moving average is $24.22 and its 200-day moving average is $23.00. BCE, Inc. has a one year low of $20.28 and a one year 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 firm has a market cap of $23.03 billion, a PE ratio of 85.16, a P/E/G ratio of 4.16 and a beta of 0.63.

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

BCE Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 15th will be given a $0.4375 dividend. This represents a $1.75 annualized dividend and a yield of 7.1%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 15th. BCE's dividend payout ratio is 437.93%.

BCE Company 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.