Letko Brosseau & Associates Inc. raised its position in shares of BCE Inc. (NYSE:BCE - Free Report) TSE: BCE by 29.2% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 4,634,549 shares of the utilities provider's stock after purchasing an additional 1,047,062 shares during the quarter. BCE accounts for about 2.1% of Letko Brosseau & Associates Inc.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its 14th biggest holding. Letko Brosseau & Associates Inc. owned 0.51% of BCE worth $107,373,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.
Several other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC increased its position in BCE by 1.2% during the 4th quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 43,402 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $1,006,000 after buying an additional 520 shares in the last quarter. Bridgewater Associates LP grew its stake in shares of BCE by 4.7% during the fourth quarter. Bridgewater Associates LP now owns 13,655 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $316,000 after acquiring an additional 614 shares during the last quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. increased its holdings in shares of BCE by 3.0% during the fourth quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. now owns 23,835 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $552,000 after acquiring an additional 691 shares in the last quarter. Mitchell & Pahl Private Wealth LLC raised its position in shares of BCE by 3.3% in the 4th quarter. Mitchell & Pahl Private Wealth LLC now owns 24,532 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $569,000 after purchasing an additional 789 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Allworth Financial LP boosted its stake in BCE by 217.6% in the 4th quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 1,153 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 790 shares in the last quarter. 41.46% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.
Wall Street Analyst Weigh In
A number of brokerages have issued reports on BCE. National Bank Financial upgraded shares of BCE from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 3rd. National Bankshares reissued a "sector perform" rating on shares of BCE in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. Barclays restated an "underweight" rating on shares of BCE in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. downgraded BCE from a "neutral" rating to an "underweight" rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada restated a "sector perform" rating and issued a $35.00 price objective on shares of BCE in a research note on Wednesday. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $38.67.
Read Our Latest Stock Analysis on BCE
BCE Stock Performance
Shares of BCE traded up $0.34 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $21.60. The company had a trading volume of 2,356,361 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,926,214. The stock has a market capitalization of $19.91 billion, a P/E ratio of 180.00, a PEG ratio of 4.13 and a beta of 0.63. BCE Inc. has a 52-week low of $20.28 and a 52-week high of $36.17. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $22.32 and a two-hundred day moving average of $24.14. The company has a quick ratio of 0.60, a current ratio of 0.62 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.26.
BCE (NYSE:BCE - Get Free Report) TSE: BCE last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 8th. The utilities provider reported $0.48 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.44 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $4.12 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.92 billion. BCE had a return on equity of 17.89% and a net margin of 0.99%. The business's quarterly revenue was down 1.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.75 EPS. On average, analysts expect that BCE Inc. will post 1.94 earnings per share for the current year.
BCE Company Profile
(
Free Report)
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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