Renaissance Technologies LLC Acquires 62,698 Shares of BCE, Inc. $BCE

Key Points

• Renaissance Technologies increased its BCE position by 501.6% in the first quarter, purchasing 62,698 additional shares and bringing its total holdings to 75,198 shares valued at approximately $1.9 million.
• Analyst sentiment is generally positive: Bank of America and TD Securities upgraded BCE to “buy,” while the stock carries a “Moderate Buy” consensus rating and a $29.25 average price target.
• BCE reported quarterly EPS of $0.47, slightly ahead of estimates, and announced a quarterly dividend of $0.4375 per share, representing a 7.5% annualized yield.

Renaissance Technologies LLC lifted its holdings in shares of BCE, Inc. (NYSE:BCE - Free Report) TSE: BCE by 501.6% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 75,198 shares of the utilities provider's stock after buying an additional 62,698 shares during the quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC's holdings in BCE were worth $1,898,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd lifted its holdings in BCE by 735.3% in the third quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 1,161 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 1,022 shares during the period. Employees Retirement System of Texas acquired a new stake in BCE during the 4th quarter worth $28,000. Ascentis Independent Advisors acquired a new stake in BCE during the 1st quarter worth $33,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC raised its position in shares of BCE by 1,642.0% during the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 1,411 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 1,330 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Colonial Trust Co SC bought a new stake in shares of BCE during the 4th quarter valued at $60,000. 41.46% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on BCE. Bank of America raised BCE from an "underperform" rating to a "buy" rating and increased their price target for the company from $24.50 to $27.00 in a research note on Tuesday. TD Securities upgraded BCE from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 1st. Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce reissued an "outperform" rating on shares of BCE in a research note on Friday, July 10th. Zacks Research cut BCE from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a report on Monday, July 13th. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a "hold (c)" rating on shares of BCE in a research report on Friday, May 29th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, BCE presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $29.25.

BCE Trading Up 3.6%

NYSE:BCE opened at $23.36 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.79, a current ratio of 0.73 and a quick ratio of 0.69. The business's 50-day simple moving average is $22.48 and its 200-day simple moving average is $24.12. BCE, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $20.87 and a fifty-two week high of $26.52. The stock has a market capitalization of $21.78 billion, a PE ratio of 4.78 and a beta of 0.51.

BCE (NYSE:BCE - Get Free Report) TSE: BCE last posted its earnings results on Thursday, August 6th. The utilities provider reported $0.47 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.46 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $4.35 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.35 billion. BCE had a return on equity of 12.90% and a net margin of 25.49%.BCE has set its FY 2026 guidance at 1.798-1.919 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that BCE, Inc. will post 1.84 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

BCE Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 15th will be given a dividend of $0.4375 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 15th. This represents a $1.75 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 7.5%. BCE's dividend payout ratio is currently 25.97%.

About BCE

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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