Bank of America Downgrades BCE (NYSE:BCE) to Underperform

BCE (NYSE:BCE) (TSE:BCE) was downgraded by stock analysts at Bank of America from a “neutral” rating to an “underperform” rating in a note issued to investors on Tuesday, MarketBeat reports.

A number of other equities analysts also recently weighed in on BCE. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price target on BCE from $48.00 to $51.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 19th. Edward Jones lowered BCE from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. Morgan Stanley began coverage on BCE in a report on Monday, December 16th. They set an “underweight” rating for the company. Canaccord Genuity Group downgraded shares of BCE from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. Finally, National Bank Financial cut shares of BCE from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, September 30th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine 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.com, BCE presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $45.00.

BCE Stock Performance

Shares of BCE opened at $22.71 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $20.72 billion, a PE ratio of 324.43, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.04 and a beta of 0.56. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $25.36 and a 200-day moving average of $30.81. BCE has a one year low of $21.87 and a one year high of $41.77. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.26, a current ratio of 0.62 and a quick ratio of 0.60.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On BCE

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of BCE. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC grew its position in shares of BCE by 121.2% during the 3rd quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC now owns 1,232 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $43,000 after purchasing an additional 675 shares in the last quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. bought a new stake in shares of BCE in the third quarter valued at approximately $51,000. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC grew its position in BCE by 321.0% during the third quarter. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC now owns 1,663 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $58,000 after buying an additional 1,268 shares in the last quarter. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC bought a new position in BCE during the 3rd quarter worth $65,000. Finally, Fairscale Capital LLC acquired a new position in BCE in the 2nd quarter valued at $76,000. 41.46% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.