BCE, Inc. (NYSE:BCE) Receives $29.25 Consensus Price Target from Analysts

BCE, Inc. (NYSE:BCE) (TSE:BCE) has been given an average rating of “Moderate Buy” by the eleven brokerages that are currently covering the firm, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company. The average 1 year price target among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $29.25.

A number of brokerages have recently commented on BCE. TD Securities upgraded BCE from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 1st. Barclays reduced their price target on BCE from $26.00 to $25.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, July 16th. Zacks Research upgraded shares of BCE from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 12th. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of BCE from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 20th. Finally, Raymond James Financial began coverage on BCE in a research report on Wednesday, July 15th. They set a “market perform” rating for the company.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On BCE

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Renaissance Technologies LLC raised its stake in BCE by 501.6% in the first quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 75,198 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,898,000 after purchasing an additional 62,698 shares in the last quarter. Plato Investment Management Ltd bought a new position in shares of BCE in the 4th quarter valued at $1,616,000. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA raised its holdings in shares of BCE by 10.1% during the 2nd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 1,886,101 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $40,570,000 after buying an additional 172,955 shares in the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE lifted its position in shares of BCE by 6.2% during the 1st quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 4,837,452 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $122,097,000 after buying an additional 282,287 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund lifted its position in shares of BCE by 535.8% during the 1st quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund now owns 532,508 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $13,435,000 after buying an additional 448,757 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 41.46% of the company’s stock.

BCE Trading Up 0.2%

NYSE:BCE opened at $23.71 on Friday. BCE has a fifty-two week low of $20.87 and a fifty-two week high of $26.52. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.79, a current ratio of 0.73 and a quick ratio of 0.69. The stock has a market capitalization of $22.11 billion, a PE ratio of 4.85, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.14 and a beta of 0.52. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $22.41 and its 200-day simple moving average is $23.85.

BCE (NYSE:BCE) (TSE:BCE) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, August 6th. The utilities provider reported $0.47 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.46 by $0.01. BCE had a return on equity of 12.90% and a net margin of 25.49%.The business had revenue of $4.35 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.35 billion. BCE has set its FY 2026 guidance at 1.798-1.919 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that BCE will post 1.93 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

BCE Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.4375 per share. This represents a $1.75 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 7.4%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 15th. BCE’s payout ratio is presently 25.97%.

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.