BCE, Inc. $BCE Shares Purchased by Bessemer Group Inc.

Bessemer Group Inc. increased its position in shares of BCE, Inc. (NYSE:BCE) (TSE:BCE) by 4.4% during the first quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 1,898,700 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after buying an additional 79,642 shares during the quarter. Bessemer Group Inc.’s holdings in BCE were worth $47,743,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

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

BCE Stock Performance

NYSE BCE opened at $21.84 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.74, a quick ratio of 0.71 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.84. The business’s 50 day moving average is $23.35 and its two-hundred day moving average is $24.35. BCE, Inc. has a 12-month low of $20.87 and a 12-month high of $26.52. The stock has a market capitalization of $20.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 4.44 and a beta of 0.52.

BCE (NYSE:BCE) (TSE:BCE) last issued its earnings results 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. The business had revenue of $4.43 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.38 billion. BCE had a return on equity of 13.87% and a net margin of 25.66%.The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.69 EPS. BCE has set its FY 2026 guidance at 1.790-1.910 EPS. Research analysts expect that BCE, Inc. will post 1.87 EPS for the current year.

BCE Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Shareholders 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 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 8.0%. BCE’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 25.81%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

BCE has been the topic of several recent research reports. Barclays dropped their price target on BCE from $26.00 to $25.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday. Raymond James Financial initiated coverage on BCE in a research note on Wednesday. They issued a “market perform” rating on the stock. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of BCE in a report on Friday, May 29th. Zacks Research cut BCE from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Monday, July 13th. Finally, Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of BCE in a report on Friday, July 10th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $30.00.

BCE 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.