BCE Inc. (NYSE:BCE) Shares Sold by Alberta Investment Management Corp

Alberta Investment Management Corp trimmed its position in shares of BCE Inc. (NYSE:BCE) (TSE:BCE) by 55.9% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 550,700 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 699,078 shares during the period. Alberta Investment Management Corp owned approximately 0.06% of BCE worth $12,759,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Caldwell Sutter Capital Inc. grew its holdings in BCE by 3.9% during the 3rd quarter. Caldwell Sutter Capital Inc. now owns 11,856 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $413,000 after acquiring an additional 445 shares in the last quarter. Prospera Financial Services Inc grew its holdings in BCE by 6.8% during the 3rd quarter. Prospera Financial Services Inc now owns 7,534 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $262,000 after acquiring an additional 478 shares in the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC grew its holdings 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 worth $1,006,000 after acquiring an additional 520 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC grew its holdings in BCE by 6.8% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 9,307 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $324,000 after acquiring an additional 596 shares in the last quarter. Finally, D.A. Davidson & CO. grew its holdings in BCE by 3.0% during the 4th quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. now owns 23,835 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $552,000 after acquiring an additional 691 shares in the last quarter. 41.46% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Canaccord Genuity Group lowered shares of BCE from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. Morgan Stanley began coverage on shares of BCE in a research report on Monday, December 16th. They issued an “underweight” rating on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. downgraded shares of BCE from a “neutral” rating to an “underweight” rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Edward Jones downgraded shares of BCE from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group restated a “hold” rating on shares of BCE in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, one has issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $40.50.

BCE Trading Down 2.0 %

Shares of NYSE:BCE opened at $23.36 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $21.31 billion, a PE ratio of 194.63, a P/E/G ratio of 4.10 and a beta of 0.57. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $23.51 and its 200 day moving average price is $29.19. BCE Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $21.87 and a fifty-two week high of $38.14. 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) (TSE:BCE) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The utilities provider reported $0.56 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.53 by $0.03. BCE had a net margin of 0.99% and a return on equity of 17.89%. Sell-side analysts anticipate that BCE Inc. will post 1.94 earnings per share for the current year.

BCE Cuts Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be given a dividend of $0.6965 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. This represents a $2.79 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 11.93%. BCE’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 2,350.00%.

About BCE

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.