L.M. Kohn & Company Sells 3,775 Shares of BCE Inc. (NYSE:BCE)

L.M. Kohn & Company lessened its holdings in BCE Inc. (NYSE:BCE) (TSE:BCE) by 29.3% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 9,099 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 3,775 shares during the quarter. L.M. Kohn & Company’s holdings in BCE were worth $211,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of BCE. Allworth Financial LP raised its stake in BCE by 217.6% in the fourth quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 1,153 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 790 shares in the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. increased its stake in shares of BCE by 1,147.3% in the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,397 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 1,285 shares during the period. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB increased its stake in shares of BCE by 67.6% in the fourth quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 1,981 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $46,000 after buying an additional 799 shares during the period. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. acquired a new position in shares of BCE in the third quarter valued at approximately $51,000. Finally, Legacy Investment Solutions LLC acquired a new position in shares of BCE in the third quarter valued at approximately $65,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 41.46% of the company’s stock.

BCE Stock Performance

Shares of BCE stock opened at $23.86 on Monday. The company has a market cap of $21.76 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 198.79, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.91 and a beta of 0.57. BCE Inc. has a 52 week low of $21.87 and a 52 week high of $38.14. The company has a quick ratio of 0.60, a current ratio of 0.62 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.26. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $23.63 and a 200-day moving average of $29.36.

BCE (NYSE:BCE) (TSE:BCE) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The utilities provider reported $0.56 EPS for the quarter, topping 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 analysts forecast that BCE Inc. will post 2 earnings per share for the current year.

BCE Cuts Dividend

The firm 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 $0.6965 dividend. This represents a $2.79 annualized dividend and a yield of 11.68%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. BCE’s payout ratio is currently 2,283.33%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have recently issued reports on BCE. Morgan Stanley began coverage on BCE in a research note on Monday, December 16th. They issued an “underweight” rating for the company. Canaccord Genuity Group reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of BCE in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. Canaccord Genuity Group cut BCE from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. Edward Jones cut BCE from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut BCE from a “neutral” rating to an “underweight” rating in a report on Friday, February 7th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating, one has given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $40.50.

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.