BCE Inc. (NYSE:BCE) Shares Bought by PEAK6 Investments LLC

PEAK6 Investments LLC increased its holdings in BCE Inc. (NYSE:BCE) (TSE:BCE) by 142.6% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 97,284 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 57,184 shares during the quarter. PEAK6 Investments LLC’s holdings in BCE were worth $3,385,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Blueshift Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of BCE during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $209,000. Townsquare Capital LLC boosted its stake in BCE by 13.2% during the 3rd quarter. Townsquare Capital LLC now owns 14,159 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $493,000 after acquiring an additional 1,647 shares during the last quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets grew its holdings in BCE by 14.8% during the 3rd quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 25,977 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $904,000 after acquiring an additional 3,352 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC increased its position in shares of BCE by 6.8% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 9,307 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $324,000 after purchasing an additional 596 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. acquired a new stake in shares of BCE in the 3rd quarter valued at about $51,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 41.46% of the company’s stock.

BCE Stock Up 0.0 %

BCE stock opened at $27.03 on Friday. BCE Inc. has a 52 week low of $26.45 and a 52 week high of $41.77. The stock has a market cap of $24.66 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 386.14, a PEG ratio of 4.20 and a beta of 0.59. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $31.13 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $32.91. 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 company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Investors of record on Monday, December 16th will be issued a dividend of $0.737 per share. This is a positive change from BCE’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.73. This represents a $2.95 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 10.91%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 16th. BCE’s payout ratio is presently 4,228.57%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

BCE has been the subject of several research reports. Canaccord Genuity Group reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of BCE in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. National Bank Financial lowered shares of BCE from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, September 30th. Canaccord Genuity Group cut shares of BCE from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. Edward Jones lowered BCE from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets increased their price objective on shares of BCE from $48.00 to $51.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Thursday, September 19th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, one has issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price 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.