US Bancorp DE Reduces Holdings in BCE, Inc. (NYSE:BCE)

Key Points

• US Bancorp DE has reduced its holdings in BCE, Inc. by 73.5%, owning only 13,780 shares after selling 38,247 during the first quarter.
• BCE reported earnings of $0.46 per share for the latest quarter, missing estimates by $0.06, with revenues of $4.47 billion compared to expectations of $5.91 billion.
• The company has cut its dividend, resulting in a payout ratio of 437.93%, following a dividend payment of $0.4375 per share.

US Bancorp DE decreased its position in shares of BCE, Inc. (NYSE:BCE - Free Report) TSE: BCE by 73.5% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 13,780 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 38,247 shares during the period. US Bancorp DE's holdings in BCE were worth $316,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in BCE. Bernard Wealth Management Corp. bought a new stake in BCE during the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. WealthCollab LLC bought a new stake in BCE during the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. GeoWealth Management LLC bought a new stake in BCE during the 4th quarter worth approximately $60,000. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB raised its stake in BCE by 67.1% during the 1st quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 3,310 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $76,000 after acquiring an additional 1,329 shares during the period. Finally, ORG Partners LLC raised its stake in BCE by 77.2% during the 1st quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 3,891 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $89,000 after acquiring an additional 1,695 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 41.46% of the company's stock.

BCE Trading Up 2.4%

BCE stock opened at $25.09 on Thursday. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $23.19 and a 200 day moving average price of $22.83. BCE, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $20.28 and a fifty-two week 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 $23.40 billion, a PE ratio of 86.52, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.10 and a beta of 0.62.

BCE (NYSE:BCE - Get Free Report) TSE: BCE last posted its earnings results on Thursday, August 7th. The utilities provider reported $0.46 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.52 by ($0.06). BCE had a net margin of 1.96% and a return on equity of 18.89%. The business had revenue of $4.47 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $5.91 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.78 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 1.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts anticipate that BCE, Inc. will post 1.94 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

BCE Cuts Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, July 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, June 17th were paid a dividend of $0.4375 per share. This represents a yield of 565.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 16th. BCE's payout ratio is presently 437.93%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

BCE has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. TD Securities restated a "hold" rating on shares of BCE in a research note 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. Cibc World Mkts cut shares of BCE from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 3rd. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated a "sector perform" rating and set a $35.00 price objective 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. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating, one has assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, BCE presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $38.67.

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.

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