BCE (NYSE:BCE) Now Covered by Analysts at Morgan Stanley

Morgan Stanley began coverage on shares of BCE (NYSE:BCE) (TSE:BCE) in a research report report published on Monday morning. The firm issued an underweight rating on the utilities provider’s stock.

Several other research firms have also recently issued reports on BCE. Canaccord Genuity Group restated a “hold” rating on shares of BCE in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price objective on shares of BCE from $48.00 to $51.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Thursday, September 19th. Edward Jones cut shares of BCE from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. Canaccord Genuity Group downgraded shares of BCE from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. Finally, National Bank Financial cut BCE from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, September 30th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating, one has issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $45.00.

BCE Stock Down 3.7 %

BCE stock opened at $23.88 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.26, a current ratio of 0.62 and a quick ratio of 0.60. BCE has a 1-year low of $23.82 and a 1-year high of $41.77. The stock has a market capitalization of $21.78 billion, a P/E ratio of 341.07, a P/E/G ratio of 4.04 and a beta of 0.54. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $29.31 and a 200-day moving average price of $32.32.

BCE Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 16th will be paid a dividend of $0.737 per share. This represents a $2.95 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 12.35%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 16th. This is a boost from BCE’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.73. BCE’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 4,214.29%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On BCE

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC raised its stake in shares of BCE by 3,355.4% in the third quarter. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC now owns 1,852,025 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $64,450,000 after buying an additional 1,798,427 shares during the period. AGF Management Ltd. increased its holdings in BCE by 5,036.0% in the 2nd quarter. AGF Management Ltd. now owns 1,354,413 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $43,842,000 after acquiring an additional 1,328,042 shares in the last quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. raised its stake in BCE by 48.7% during the 3rd quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. now owns 3,563,534 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $123,877,000 after acquiring an additional 1,166,800 shares during the period. CIBC Asset Management Inc raised its stake in BCE by 23.8% during the 2nd quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 5,520,090 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $178,677,000 after acquiring an additional 1,061,488 shares during the period. Finally, Toronto Dominion Bank lifted its holdings 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 purchasing an additional 905,857 shares in the last quarter. 41.46% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.