BCE, Inc. (NYSE:BCE) Receives Consensus Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from Analysts

Shares of BCE, Inc. (NYSE:BCE) (TSE:BCE) have been given an average rating of “Moderate Buy” by the twelve brokerages that are currently covering the stock, MarketBeat reports. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating on the company. The average 1 year price objective among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $29.00.

Several research firms have issued reports on BCE. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of BCE from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Sunday, December 28th. CIBC raised BCE from a “neutral” rating to a “sector outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 9th. Scotiabank restated an “outperform” rating on shares of BCE in a research note on Monday, January 12th. Cibc Captl Mkts raised BCE from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 9th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d+)” rating on shares of BCE in a report on Wednesday, October 8th.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On BCE

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Frank Rimerman Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of BCE by 1.4% during the third quarter. Frank Rimerman Advisors LLC now owns 32,813 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $767,000 after buying an additional 461 shares during the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its position in BCE by 11.1% during the 3rd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 4,802 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $112,000 after acquiring an additional 480 shares during the period. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of BCE by 15.7% in the 2nd quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 3,581 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $79,000 after purchasing an additional 485 shares during the last quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. increased its holdings in shares of BCE by 4.3% in the third quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. now owns 14,091 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $329,000 after purchasing an additional 581 shares during the period. Finally, Binnacle Investments Inc raised its stake in shares of BCE by 17.1% during the third quarter. Binnacle Investments Inc now owns 4,164 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $97,000 after purchasing an additional 609 shares during the last quarter. 41.46% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

BCE Price Performance

Shares of NYSE BCE opened at $24.70 on Friday. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $23.44 and its 200-day simple moving average is $23.74. The firm has a market capitalization of $23.03 billion, a PE ratio of 5.14 and a beta of 0.60. BCE has a fifty-two week low of $20.28 and a fifty-two week high of $26.01. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.81, a quick ratio of 0.55 and a current ratio of 0.58.

BCE (NYSE:BCE) (TSE:BCE) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 6th. The utilities provider reported $0.57 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.52 by $0.05. The company had revenue of $4.34 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.14 billion. BCE had a net margin of 25.62% and a return on equity of 17.35%. The firm’s revenue was up 1.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.75 earnings per share. BCE has set its FY 2025 guidance at 1.910-1.980 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that BCE will post 1.94 EPS for the current fiscal year.

BCE Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 15th. Investors of record on Monday, December 15th were paid a dividend of $0.4375 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 15th. This represents a $1.75 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 7.1%. BCE’s dividend payout ratio is currently 25.99%.

BCE Company 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.