Janney Montgomery Scott LLC Cuts Stock Position in BCE, Inc. $BCE

Janney Montgomery Scott LLC lessened its holdings in BCE, Inc. (NYSE:BCE - Free Report) TSE: BCE by 12.6% in the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 381,539 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 54,794 shares during the quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC's holdings in BCE were worth $8,207,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd boosted its holdings in shares of BCE by 735.3% in the 3rd quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 1,161 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 1,022 shares during the last quarter. Employees Retirement System of Texas bought a new position in BCE during the fourth quarter valued at about $28,000. Ascentis Independent Advisors purchased a new stake in BCE during the first quarter worth about $33,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in BCE by 1,642.0% during the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 1,411 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 1,330 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Colonial Trust Co SC bought a new stake in BCE in the fourth quarter worth about $60,000. 41.46% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Bank of America upgraded shares of BCE from an "underperform" rating to a "buy" rating and boosted their target price for the company from $24.50 to $27.00 in a research note on Tuesday, August 11th. Barclays decreased their price target on shares of BCE from $26.00 to $25.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, July 16th. Raymond James Financial began coverage on shares of BCE in a report on Wednesday, July 15th. They issued a "market perform" rating on the stock. Zacks Research upgraded BCE from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, Scotiabank reissued an "outperform" rating on shares of BCE in a report on Friday, August 7th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, BCE currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $29.25.

BCE Trading Up 0.6%

Shares of BCE stock opened at $23.46 on Friday. BCE, Inc. has a 52-week low of $20.87 and a 52-week high of $26.52. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $22.42 and its 200 day simple moving average is $24.09. The stock has a market capitalization of $21.88 billion, a P/E ratio of 4.80 and a beta of 0.51. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.79, a quick ratio of 0.69 and a current ratio of 0.73.

BCE (NYSE:BCE - Get Free Report) TSE: BCE last issued its earnings results on Thursday, August 6th. The utilities provider reported $0.47 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.46 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $4.35 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.35 billion. BCE had a net margin of 25.49% and a return on equity of 12.90%. BCE has set its FY 2026 guidance at 1.798-1.919 EPS. As a group, research analysts anticipate that BCE, Inc. will post 1.86 EPS for the current year.

BCE Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.4375 per share. This represents a $1.75 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 7.5%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 15th. BCE's dividend payout ratio is presently 25.97%.

BCE Company Profile

BCE Inc NYSE: BCE is a Canadian communications, media and entertainment company that operates through its primary subsidiaries, including Bell Canada and Bell Media. As a large integrated telecommunications provider, BCE delivers a broad range of connectivity services and content to residential, business and wholesale customers across Canada. The company combines network infrastructure with media assets to offer bundled communications and entertainment solutions.

On the services side, BCE provides fixed-line and wireless voice services, mobile data, high-speed internet, fibre and broadband access, and television services through platforms such as Bell Fibe and Bell TV.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding BCE? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for BCE, Inc. (NYSE:BCE - Free Report) TSE: BCE.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.

Continue following MarketBeat

Add MarketBeat as your preferred source on Google to see our latest stories in your feed.

Add As Preferred Source