AlphaMark Advisors LLC Boosts Holdings in BCE Inc. (NYSE:BCE)

AlphaMark Advisors LLC boosted its stake in BCE Inc. (NYSE:BCE) (TSE:BCE) by 640.0% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 2,960 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 2,560 shares during the period. AlphaMark Advisors LLC’s holdings in BCE were worth $69,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC raised its position in BCE by 121.2% in the 3rd quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC now owns 1,232 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $43,000 after purchasing an additional 675 shares during the last quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB increased its stake in BCE by 67.6% in the fourth quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 1,981 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $46,000 after purchasing an additional 799 shares during the period. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. purchased a new stake in shares of BCE in the third quarter valued at about $51,000. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC boosted its stake in shares of BCE by 321.0% during the third quarter. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC now owns 1,663 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $58,000 after buying an additional 1,268 shares during the period. Finally, Legacy Investment Solutions LLC purchased a new position in shares of BCE during the third quarter worth about $65,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 41.46% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have commented on BCE shares. Morgan Stanley started coverage on BCE in a research note on Monday, December 16th. They set an “underweight” rating for the company. Canaccord Genuity Group reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of BCE in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. Bank of America cut shares of BCE from a “neutral” rating to an “underperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. National Bank Financial cut shares of BCE from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, September 30th. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group cut shares of BCE from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating, one has given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $45.00.

BCE Price Performance

BCE stock opened at $23.53 on Monday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $24.63 and a 200-day moving average of $30.34. The company has a market cap of $21.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 336.07, a PEG ratio of 3.83 and a beta of 0.56. 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 Inc. has a 12-month low of $21.87 and a 12-month high of $41.15.

BCE Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 16th were given a dividend of $0.737 per share. This represents a $2.95 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 12.53%. This is an increase from BCE’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.73. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 16th. BCE’s payout ratio is presently 4,028.57%.

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.