BCE, Inc. $BCE is Intact Investment Management Inc.’s 10th Largest Position

Intact Investment Management Inc. reduced its position in BCE, Inc. (NYSE:BCE) (TSE:BCE) by 2.5% in the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 3,120,530 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 79,660 shares during the quarter. BCE comprises about 2.2% of Intact Investment Management Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 10th biggest holding. Intact Investment Management Inc.’s holdings in BCE were worth $72,926,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in BCE. Hilltop National Bank acquired a new position in shares of BCE in the second quarter worth about $28,000. JCIC Asset Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of BCE in the 3rd quarter valued at about $31,000. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. raised its holdings in BCE by 2,459.6% in the 2nd quarter. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. now owns 1,459 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 1,402 shares during the period. Trust Co. of Toledo NA OH purchased a new position in BCE during the second quarter worth approximately $40,000. Finally, Bayforest Capital Ltd purchased a new position in BCE during the second quarter worth approximately $42,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 41.46% of the company’s stock.

BCE Trading Up 2.0%

Shares of BCE stock opened at $25.20 on Monday. BCE, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $20.28 and a fifty-two week high of $26.01. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.81, a quick ratio of 0.55 and a current ratio of 0.58. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $23.49 and its two-hundred day moving average is $23.75. The firm has a market capitalization of $23.50 billion, a P/E ratio of 5.24 and a beta of 0.60.

BCE (NYSE:BCE) (TSE:BCE) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, November 6th. The utilities provider reported $0.57 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.52 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $4.34 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.14 billion. BCE had a net margin of 25.62% and a return on equity of 17.35%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 1.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.75 earnings per share. BCE has set its FY 2025 guidance at 1.910-1.980 EPS. Research analysts expect that BCE, Inc. will post 1.94 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

BCE Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 15th were paid a $0.4375 dividend. This represents a $1.75 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 15th. BCE’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 25.99%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on BCE shares. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (d+)” rating on shares of BCE in a research note on Wednesday. Scotiabank reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of BCE in a report on Monday, January 12th. TD Securities raised shares of BCE from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 15th. BMO Capital Markets upgraded shares of BCE from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 11th. Finally, Cibc Captl Mkts raised shares of BCE from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 9th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have given a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $29.00.

BCE Company Profile

BCE Inc (NYSE: BCE) is a Canadian communications, media and entertainment company that operates through its primary subsidiaries, including Bell Canada and Bell Media. As a large integrated telecommunications provider, BCE delivers a broad range of connectivity services and content to residential, business and wholesale customers across Canada. The company combines network infrastructure with media assets to offer bundled communications and entertainment solutions.

On the services side, BCE provides fixed-line and wireless voice services, mobile data, high-speed internet, fibre and broadband access, and television services through platforms such as Bell Fibe and Bell TV.