BCE, Inc. (NYSE:BCE) Receives $28.67 Consensus Price Target from Analysts

BCE, Inc. (NYSE:BCE) (TSE:BCE) has been given a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by the nine brokerages that are currently covering the company, Marketbeat Ratings reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating, four have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. The average 12 month price objective among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $28.6667.

BCE has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of BCE in a research note on Friday, May 29th. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their price target on BCE from $38.00 to $39.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 17th. Finally, TD Securities lowered BCE from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 2nd.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd increased its holdings in shares of BCE by 735.3% in the 3rd quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 1,161 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 1,022 shares during the period. Employees Retirement System of Texas purchased a new position in shares of BCE in the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. Ascentis Independent Advisors purchased a new position in shares of BCE in the 1st quarter valued at $33,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of BCE by 1,642.0% in the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 1,411 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 1,330 shares during the period. Finally, Colonial Trust Co SC purchased a new position in shares of BCE in the 4th quarter valued at $60,000. 41.46% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

BCE Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:BCE opened at $24.50 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $22.84 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 4.98 and a beta of 0.50. BCE has a 12 month low of $21.58 and a 12 month high of $26.52. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $24.35 and its 200 day moving average is $24.46. The company has a current ratio of 0.74, a quick ratio of 0.71 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.84.

BCE (NYSE:BCE) (TSE:BCE) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 7th. The utilities provider reported $0.46 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 net margin of 25.66% and a return on equity of 13.87%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 4.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.69 earnings per share. BCE has set its FY 2026 guidance at 1.790-1.910 EPS. Research analysts predict that BCE will post 1.9 EPS for the current year.

BCE Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 15th will be given a dividend of $0.4375 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 15th. This represents a $1.75 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 7.1%. BCE’s payout ratio is 26.02%.

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.