Entropy Technologies LP Purchases Shares of 69,736 BCE, Inc. $BCE

Entropy Technologies LP acquired a new stake in shares of BCE, Inc. (NYSE:BCE) (TSE:BCE) during the 1st quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm acquired 69,736 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $1,760,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in BCE. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd increased its position in BCE by 735.3% in the 3rd quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 1,161 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 1,022 shares in the last quarter. Employees Retirement System of Texas acquired a new position in BCE during the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. Ascentis Independent Advisors bought a new position in BCE in the first quarter worth approximately $33,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC grew its stake in BCE by 1,642.0% in the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 1,411 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 1,330 shares during the period. Finally, Colonial Trust Co SC acquired a new stake in BCE in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $60,000. Institutional investors own 41.46% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Raymond James Financial began coverage on BCE in a research report on Wednesday, July 15th. They set a “market perform” rating on the stock. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of BCE in a research report on Friday, May 29th. Zacks Research lowered shares of BCE from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Monday, July 13th. Barclays lowered their price objective on shares of BCE from $26.00 to $25.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, July 16th. Finally, TD Securities raised shares of BCE from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 1st. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $30.00.

BCE Stock Up 0.1%

BCE opened at $21.32 on Monday. BCE, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $20.87 and a fifty-two week high of $26.52. The firm has a market capitalization of $19.89 billion, a P/E ratio of 4.33 and a beta of 0.52. The company’s 50-day moving average is $23.07 and its 200 day moving average is $24.27. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.84, a current ratio of 0.74 and a quick ratio of 0.71.

BCE (NYSE:BCE) (TSE:BCE) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 7th. The utilities provider reported $0.46 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.42 by $0.04. BCE had a net margin of 25.66% and a return on equity of 13.87%. The business had revenue of $4.43 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.38 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.69 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 4.0% compared to the same quarter last year. BCE has set its FY 2026 guidance at 1.790-1.910 EPS. Research analysts expect that BCE, Inc. will post 1.85 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

BCE Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 15th were issued a $0.4375 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 15th. This represents a $1.75 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 8.2%. BCE’s dividend payout ratio is currently 25.81%.

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.