bce
BCE Inc., an abbreviation of its former name Bell Canada Enterprises Inc., is a publicly traded Canadian holding company for Bell Canada, which includes telecommunications providers and various mass media assets under its subsidiary Bell Media Inc. Founded through a corporate reorganization in 1983, when Bell Canada, Northern Telecom, and other related companies all became subsidiaries of Bell Canada Enterprises Inc., it is one of Canada’s largest corporations. The company is headquartered at 1 Carrefour Alexander-Graham-Bell in the Verdun borough of Montreal, Quebec, Canada.
BCE Inc. is a component of the S&P/TSX 60 and is listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange and the American-based New York Stock Exchange.
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ISHARES S&P/TSX 60 INDEX ETF $18.65 (Toronto symbol XIU; buy or sell through brokers; ca.ishares.com) is a good low-fee way to buy the top stocks on the TSX. The units are made up of stocks that represent the S&P/TSX 60 Index, which consists of the 60 largest, most heavily traded stocks on the exchange. The ETF’s MER is just 0.18% of assets, and the units yield 3.2%. The index mostly consists of high-quality companies. However, it must ensure that all sectors are represented, so it holds a few we wouldn’t include. The index’s top holdings are Royal Bank, 8.7%; TD Bank, 8.0%; Bank of Nova Scotia, 5.6%; CN Railway, 4.8%; BCE, 4.0%; Bank of Montreal, 3.9%; Suncor Energy, 3.8%; Valeant Pharmaceuticals, 3.5%; Enbridge Inc., 3.3%; and Manulife Financial Corp., 3.1%....
We feel that investors will profit the most by holding a well-balanced portfolio of high-quality stocks. However, if you don’t want to build a portfolio, or you want to supplement your individual stock holdings, then ETFs can provide a great alternative. The main factors we use to evaluate ETFs are the stocks they hold, the diversification of their holdings across the five economic sectors and the fees (MERs) they charge. In general, investors holding mainly ETFs would want, say, 60% in Canadian ETFs and 20% to 30% in U.S. ETFs....
BCE INC. $56.74 (Toronto symbol BCE; Shares outstanding: 849.3 million; Market cap: $48.8 billion; TSINetwork Rating: Above Average; Dividend yield: 4.6%; www.bce.ca) has formed a new partnership with U.S.-based iHeartRadio, which streams live radio stations and other audio broadcasts over the Internet. iHeartRadio has more than 75 million users in the U.S., Australia and New Zealand. BCE plans to use iHeartRadio’s technology to launch a free-to-use, advertising-supported streaming service in Canada in mid-2016. This service will also feature BCE’s 106 radio stations, as well as other content from its TV channels. BCE is a buy....
MANITOBA TELECOM SERVICES INC. $30.95 (Toronto symbol MBT; Shares outstanding: 79.3 million; Market cap: $2.4 billion; TSINetwork Rating: Average; Dividend yield: 4.2%; www.mts.ca) has completed the sale of its Allstream division to U.S.-based Zayo Group (New York symbol ZAYO). The company received $420.0 million, net of transaction costs. It will probably put the proceeds toward its long-term debt, which was $677.1 million as of September 30, 2015. That’s equal to 29% of its $2.4-billion market cap. Manitoba Telecom is still a hold....
The BMO Low Volatility Canadian Equity ETF, $25.54, symbol ZLB on Toronto (Units outstanding: 25.6 million; Market cap: $653.8 million; www.etfs.bmo.com), provides exposure to a low beta weighted portfolio of Canadian stocks. The ETF selects the 40 lowest beta stocks from the 100 largest and most liquid securities in Canada. The underlying portfolio is rebalanced in June and reconstituted in December. The BMO Low Volatility Canadian Equity ETF has an MER of 0.40%. It currently yields 2.5%. The BMO Low Volatility Canadian Equity ETF’s current top holdings are: Fairfax Financial, Canadian REIT, Dollarama, Progressive Waste Solutions, Empire Company, Intact Financial, RioCan REIT, Emera, Metro Inc. and BCE Inc....
ATCO LTD. (Toronto symbols ACO.X [class I non-voting] $35 and ACO.Y [class II voting] $35; Income Portfolio, Utilities sector; Shares outstanding: 115.1 million; Market cap: $4.0 billion; Price-to-sales ratio: 1.0; Dividend yield: 3.3%; TSINetwork Rating: Above Average; www.atco.com) has sold its ATCO Emissions Management subsidiary for an undisclosed sum. This business helps producers of oil, gas and electricity reduce air and noise pollution. Small deals like this help simplify ATCO’s complex holding company structure, which should enhance its long-term value. The class I (X) non-voting shares are more liquid than the class II (Y) voting shares....
Exchange traded funds (ETFs) are set up to mirror the performance of a stock market index or sub-index. They hold a more or less fixed selection of securities that represent the holdings that go into the calculation of the index or sub-index. ETFs trade on stock exchanges, just like stocks. That’s different from mutual funds, which you can only buy at the end of the day at a price that reflects the fund’s value at the close of trading. Prices of ETFs are quoted in newspaper stock tables and online. You pay brokerage commissions to buy and sell them, but their low management fees give them a cost advantage over most mutual funds....
BCE INC. $54.71 (Toronto symbol BCE; Shares outstanding: 849.3 million; Market cap: $46.0 billion; TSINetwork Rating: Above Average; Dividend yield: 4.8%; www.bce.ca) has reached a deal with video-streaming giant Netflix (symbol NFLX on Nasdaq). Under the agreement, all BCE’s Fibe TV and FibreOP TV subscribers will be able to access their Netflix accounts directly through set-top boxes. Now, instead of buying new equipment or switching TV inputs, Netflix subscribers can just select the Netflix app on their remote controls. Netflix competes with BCE’s CraveTV videostreaming service, but it’s hugely popular, with over four million Canadian subscribers. That gives Fibe an edge over rivals such as Rogers....
BCE now trades close to its all-time highs. That’s mainly because its wireless revenue continues to grow steadily, rising 26.5% from $4.9 billion in 2010 to $6.2 billion in 2014. At the same time, wireline revenue fell from $10.7 billion to $10.0 billion as land-line phone users continue to switch to wireless. However, BCE’s Fibe Internet and TV services are spurring new demand for its fibre optic land lines. This is a big growth market for the company. BCE INC. $57.50 (Toronto symbol BCE; Shares outstanding: 848.1 million; Market cap: $48.8 billion; TSINetwork Rating: Above Average; Dividend yield: 4.5%; www.bce.ca) is Canada’s largest provider of telephone, Internet and wireless services. It also offers satellite and Internet TV across the country. In the three months ended September 30, 2015, BCE’s earnings per share rose 12.0%, to $0.93 from $0.83 a year earlier. Revenue increased 2.9%, to $5.3 billion from $5.2 billion....
MANITOBA TELECOM SERVICES INC. $29.57 (Toronto symbol MBT; Shares outstanding: 79.3 million; Market cap: $2.3 billion; TSINetwork Rating: Average; Dividend yield: 4.4%; www.mts.ca) has agreed to sell its Allstream division, which offers telephone, Internet and other communication services to businesses across Canada. Allstream supplies 40% of Manitoba Telecom’s revenue. The remaining 60% comes from its MTS division, which has 1.3 million telephone and wireless customers in Manitoba. The buyer is U.S.-based Zayo Group (New York symbol ZAYO), which will pay $465.0 million. Manitoba Telecom will probably use some of the proceeds to pay down its long-term debt of $677.1 million, which is equal to 29% of its $2.3-billion market cap (or the value of all outstanding shares)....