Advisors Asset Management Inc. Buys 2,572 Shares of BCE Inc. (NYSE:BCE)

Advisors Asset Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of BCE Inc. (NYSE:BCE) (TSE:BCE) by 10.7% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 26,545 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after buying an additional 2,572 shares during the period. Advisors Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in BCE were worth $924,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of BCE. Toronto Dominion Bank boosted its stake in BCE by 12.0% during the second quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank now owns 8,450,810 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $273,553,000 after buying an additional 905,857 shares during the period. CIBC Asset Management Inc grew its holdings in shares of BCE by 23.8% during the second quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 5,520,090 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $178,677,000 after purchasing an additional 1,061,488 shares in the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company grew its holdings in shares of BCE by 0.4% during the second quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 5,068,728 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $163,932,000 after purchasing an additional 21,487 shares in the last quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. increased its position in shares of BCE by 5.5% in the second quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 3,564,393 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $115,379,000 after purchasing an additional 186,659 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. lifted its position in BCE by 48.7% during the third quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. now owns 3,563,534 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $123,877,000 after purchasing an additional 1,166,800 shares during the last quarter. 41.46% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

BCE Trading Down 1.4 %

NYSE BCE opened at $26.63 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $24.29 billion, a PE ratio of 380.43, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.16 and a beta of 0.59. BCE Inc. has a 1-year low of $26.45 and a 1-year high of $41.77. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $31.62 and a 200-day moving average of $33.05. The company has a current ratio of 0.62, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.26.

BCE Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 16th will be given a $0.737 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 16th. This represents a $2.95 annualized dividend and a yield of 11.07%. This is an increase from BCE’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.73. BCE’s payout ratio is presently 4,228.57%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have commented on BCE shares. Barclays decreased their price target on shares of BCE from $34.00 to $30.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, November 11th. National Bank Financial cut BCE from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, September 30th. BMO Capital Markets raised their price target on BCE from $48.00 to $51.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 19th. Edward Jones cut BCE from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. Finally, Cibc World Mkts raised BCE from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, August 2nd. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, one has assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $45.00.

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.