BCE, Inc. (NYSE:BCE) Stock Has Average Price Target of $29.25

BCE, Inc. (NYSE:BCE) (TSE:BCE) has earned an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the eleven research firms that are presently covering the stock, Marketbeat.com reports. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 1-year target price among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $29.25.

BCE has been the subject of several analyst reports. Bank of America raised shares of BCE from an “underperform” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price target for the company from $24.50 to $27.00 in a research note on Tuesday, August 11th. TD Securities reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of BCE in a research report on Tuesday, September 15th. Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of BCE in a report on Friday, July 10th. Raymond James Financial initiated coverage on BCE in a research report on Wednesday, July 15th. They issued a “market perform” rating for the company. Finally, Scotiabank reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of BCE in a research note on Friday, August 7th.

Institutional Trading of BCE

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Renaissance Technologies LLC boosted its position in shares of BCE by 501.6% during the first quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 75,198 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,898,000 after buying an additional 62,698 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA raised its holdings in shares of BCE by 10.1% in the 2nd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 1,886,101 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $40,570,000 after buying an additional 172,955 shares during the period. Bank of America Corp DE raised its holdings in shares of BCE by 6.2% in the 1st quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 4,837,452 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $122,097,000 after buying an additional 282,287 shares during the period. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund raised its holdings in shares of BCE by 535.8% in the 1st quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund now owns 532,508 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $13,435,000 after buying an additional 448,757 shares during the period. Finally, Bank of Nova Scotia lifted its stake in BCE by 0.9% during the 1st quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia now owns 17,296,776 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $436,320,000 after acquiring an additional 160,310 shares in the last quarter. 41.46% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

BCE Stock Down 0.0%

NYSE BCE opened at $19.73 on Wednesday. BCE has a 52 week low of $19.51 and a 52 week high of $26.52. The company has a quick ratio of 0.69, a current ratio of 0.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.79. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $22.50 and its 200-day simple moving average is $23.21. The firm has a market cap of $18.40 billion, a PE ratio of 4.04, a P/E/G ratio of 5.24 and a beta of 0.54.

BCE (NYSE:BCE) (TSE:BCE) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 6th. The utilities provider reported $0.47 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.46 by $0.01. BCE had a net margin of 25.49% and a return on equity of 12.90%. The firm had revenue of $4.35 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.35 billion. BCE has set its FY 2026 guidance at 1.798-1.919 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that BCE will post 1.9 earnings per share for the current year.

BCE Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 15th will be issued a dividend of C$0.44 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 15th. This represents a $1.75 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 8.9%. BCE’s dividend payout ratio is currently 25.77%.

BCE Company Profile

BCE Inc, operating primarily under the Bell brand, is a Canadian communications and media company. Its telecommunications operations provide wireless voice and data services, broadband internet, television, home phone, and business communications solutions to consumers, organizations, and government customers across Canada.

Through Bell, the company offers mobile connectivity, fiber and other internet services, digital television, cloud services, cybersecurity, unified communications, and information technology solutions.