Lindbrook Capital LLC Purchases 1,553 Shares of BCE Inc. (NYSE:BCE)

Lindbrook Capital LLC raised its stake in BCE Inc. (NYSE:BCE) (TSE:BCE) by 93.6% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 3,213 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after buying an additional 1,553 shares during the period. Lindbrook Capital LLC’s holdings in BCE were worth $74,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of BCE in the 4th quarter valued at $8,233,000. Vision Financial Markets LLC purchased a new stake in shares of BCE in the 4th quarter worth about $49,000. Aigen Investment Management LP purchased a new stake in shares of BCE in the 4th quarter worth about $1,239,000. Nicola Wealth Management LTD. purchased a new stake in shares of BCE in the 4th quarter worth about $8,989,000. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of BCE by 2.9% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 6,028,888 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $139,734,000 after purchasing an additional 168,704 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 41.46% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

BCE has been the subject of several research reports. Barclays reiterated an “underweight” rating on shares of BCE in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. Morgan Stanley started coverage on shares of BCE in a research note on Monday, December 16th. They issued an “underweight” rating for the company. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $39.00 price target on shares of BCE in a research note on Tuesday, February 25th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered shares of BCE from a “neutral” rating to an “underweight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Finally, Bank of America lowered shares of BCE from a “neutral” rating to an “underperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, one has given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, BCE currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $40.00.

BCE Stock Performance

BCE opened at $24.78 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.62, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.26. The company has a market cap of $22.85 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 206.53, a PEG ratio of 4.13 and a beta of 0.57. The company’s 50 day moving average is $23.51 and its 200 day moving average is $28.24. BCE Inc. has a 12-month low of $21.87 and a 12-month high of $36.94.

BCE (NYSE:BCE) (TSE:BCE) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The utilities provider reported $0.56 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.53 by $0.03. BCE had a net margin of 0.99% and a return on equity of 17.89%. On average, equities research analysts predict that BCE Inc. will post 1.94 EPS for the current year.

BCE Cuts Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be paid a dividend of $0.6965 per share. This represents a $2.79 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 11.24%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. BCE’s dividend payout ratio is currently 2,291.67%.

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.