JPMorgan Chase & Co. Cuts Stock Position in BCE, Inc. $BCE

Key Points

• JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut its stake in BCE by 24.9% in Q3, selling 655,646 shares and now owning 1,980,816 shares (about 0.21% of BCE) valued at roughly $46.33 million.
• BCE reported Q results of $0.49 EPS (beat) but revenue of $4.66B missed estimates, set FY2026 guidance of 1.79–1.91 EPS, and holds an analyst consensus of "Moderate Buy" with an average price target of $28.67.
• Dividend: BCE pays a quarterly $0.4375 dividend (annualized $1.75) for a yield of 6.8%, with record date Mar 16 and payable Apr 15; payout ratio is about 26%.

JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased its position in shares of BCE, Inc. (NYSE:BCE - Free Report) TSE: BCE by 24.9% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,980,816 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 655,646 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. owned about 0.21% of BCE worth $46,331,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of BCE. Frank Rimerman Advisors LLC increased its stake in BCE by 1.4% during the third quarter. Frank Rimerman Advisors LLC now owns 32,813 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $767,000 after purchasing an additional 461 shares during the period. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of BCE by 11.1% in the third quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 4,802 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $112,000 after purchasing an additional 480 shares during the period. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of BCE by 15.7% in the second quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 3,581 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $79,000 after purchasing an additional 485 shares during the period. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. grew its holdings in shares of BCE by 4.3% in the third quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. now owns 14,091 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $329,000 after purchasing an additional 581 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Binnacle Investments Inc grew its holdings in shares of BCE by 17.1% in the third quarter. Binnacle Investments Inc now owns 4,164 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $97,000 after purchasing an additional 609 shares in the last quarter. 41.46% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

BCE Stock Performance

Shares of BCE stock opened at $25.81 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.55, a current ratio of 0.58 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.74. BCE, Inc. has a 52 week low of $20.28 and a 52 week high of $26.52. The firm's 50 day moving average is $25.52 and its two-hundred day moving average is $24.14. The firm has a market capitalization of $24.06 billion, a P/E ratio of 5.26 and a beta of 0.60.

BCE (NYSE:BCE - Get Free Report) TSE: BCE last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 5th. The utilities provider reported $0.49 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.45 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $4.66 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.55 billion. BCE had a net margin of 26.14% and a return on equity of 15.39%. The company's revenue was down .3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.79 EPS. BCE has set its FY 2026 guidance at 1.790-1.910 EPS. Research analysts forecast that BCE, Inc. will post 1.94 EPS for the current fiscal year.

BCE Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 16th will be paid a $0.4375 dividend. This represents a $1.75 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.8%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 16th. BCE's dividend payout ratio is currently 26.07%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of BCE from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Sunday, December 28th. BMO Capital Markets upgraded shares of BCE from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, December 11th. Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce raised BCE from a "neutral" rating to a "sector outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 9th. Scotiabank reiterated an "outperform" rating on shares of BCE in a research note on Monday, January 12th. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded BCE from a "sell (d+)" rating to a "hold (c-)" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 4th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have given a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $28.67.

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.

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