TD Private Client Wealth LLC Sells 82,079 Shares of BCE Inc. (NYSE:BCE)

TD Private Client Wealth LLC decreased its position in shares of BCE Inc. (NYSE:BCE) (TSE:BCE) by 89.2% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 9,948 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 82,079 shares during the quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC’s holdings in BCE were worth $231,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of BCE. Allworth Financial LP raised its stake in BCE by 217.6% during the fourth quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 1,153 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 790 shares during the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its stake in shares of BCE by 1,147.3% in the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,397 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 1,285 shares during the period. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB increased its holdings in BCE by 67.6% in the fourth quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 1,981 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $46,000 after purchasing an additional 799 shares in the last quarter. Vision Financial Markets LLC acquired a new position in BCE in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $49,000. Finally, Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. bought a new position in shares of BCE during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $51,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 41.46% of the company’s stock.

BCE Stock Performance

Shares of BCE opened at $22.53 on Tuesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $20.76 billion, a P/E ratio of 187.71, a P/E/G ratio of 4.13 and a beta of 0.57. BCE Inc. has a 52 week low of $21.87 and a 52 week high of $36.17. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $23.59 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $27.31. 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 (NYSE:BCE) (TSE:BCE) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The utilities provider reported $0.56 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.53 by $0.03. BCE had a return on equity of 17.89% and a net margin of 0.99%. Equities analysts forecast that BCE Inc. will post 1.94 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

BCE Cuts Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Investors of record on Friday, March 14th will be given a dividend of $0.6965 per share. This represents a $2.79 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 12.37%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. BCE’s payout ratio is currently 2,291.67%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Bank of America lowered shares of BCE from a “neutral” rating to an “underperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. Morgan Stanley assumed coverage on shares of BCE in a report on Monday, December 16th. They set an “underweight” rating on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut shares of BCE from a “neutral” rating to an “underweight” rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. National Bankshares reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating on shares of BCE in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $39.00 price target on shares of BCE in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating, one has issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $40.00.

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.