Geneos Wealth Management Inc. Has $44,000 Position in BCE Inc. (NYSE:BCE)

Geneos Wealth Management Inc. lessened its stake in BCE Inc. (NYSE:BCE) (TSE:BCE) by 25.8% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 1,879 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 654 shares during the period. Geneos Wealth Management Inc.’s holdings in BCE were worth $44,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. National Bank of Canada FI lifted its stake in shares of BCE by 4.8% during the third quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 18,873,961 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $656,421,000 after acquiring an additional 864,472 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its holdings in BCE by 25.3% during the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 3,657,533 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $127,282,000 after purchasing an additional 738,656 shares during the last quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. lifted its position 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 valued at $123,877,000 after purchasing an additional 1,166,800 shares during the period. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC boosted its stake in shares of BCE by 3,355.4% in the 3rd quarter. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC now owns 1,852,025 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $64,450,000 after purchasing an additional 1,798,427 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Lincluden Management Ltd. grew its position in shares of BCE by 6.9% during the 3rd quarter. Lincluden Management Ltd. now owns 1,378,053 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $47,940,000 after buying an additional 88,866 shares during the period. 41.46% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on the stock. Canaccord Genuity Group reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of BCE in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on BCE in a research note on Monday, December 16th. They set an “underweight” rating for the company. Edward Jones lowered BCE from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. Canaccord Genuity Group lowered BCE from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. Finally, Barclays reiterated an “underweight” rating on shares of BCE in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. Three research 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 presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $45.00.

BCE Stock Performance

Shares of BCE opened at $23.83 on Friday. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $24.38 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $30.13. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.26, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a current ratio of 0.62. BCE Inc. has a twelve month low of $21.87 and a twelve month high of $40.99. The firm has a market cap of $21.74 billion, a P/E ratio of 340.43, a PEG ratio of 3.92 and a beta of 0.56.

BCE Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Investors of record on Monday, December 16th were paid a $0.737 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 16th. 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 12.37%. BCE’s dividend payout ratio is presently 4,028.57%.

BCE 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.