Brokerages Set BCE Inc. (TSE:BCE) PT at C$40.88

BCE Inc. (TSE:BCE) (NYSE:BCE) has been given an average rating of “Reduce” by the twelve ratings firms that are covering the firm, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, nine have assigned a hold recommendation and one has assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month price target among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is C$40.42.

BCE has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. downgraded BCE from a “neutral” rating to an “underweight” rating and decreased their price objective for the company from C$35.00 to C$29.00 in a report on Friday. National Bankshares reduced their target price on BCE from C$37.00 to C$35.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 3rd. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their target price on BCE from C$45.00 to C$41.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, December 18th. TD Securities boosted their target price on BCE from C$31.00 to C$33.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Friday. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group reduced their target price on BCE from C$41.00 to C$37.50 in a report on Friday, November 8th.

BCE Trading Up 1.9 %

TSE BCE opened at C$32.21 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.43, a current ratio of 0.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 197.43. The firm’s 50 day moving average is C$34.40. The firm has a market capitalization of C$29.38 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.98, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.67 and a beta of 0.48. BCE has a 1-year low of C$31.43 and a 1-year high of C$51.57.

BCE Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, January 15th were issued a dividend of $0.9975 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 16th. This represents a $3.99 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 12.39%. BCE’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 185.58%.

BCE Company Profile

BCE Inc, a communications company, provides wireless, wireline, Internet, and television (TV) services to residential, business, and wholesale customers in Canada. The company operates through two segments, Bell Communication and Technology Services, and Bell Media. The Bell Communication and Technology Services segment provides wireless products and services including mobile data and voice plans and devices; wireline products and services comprising data, including internet access, internet protocol television, cloud-based services, and business solutions, as well as voice, and other communication services and products; and satellite TV and connectivity services for residential, small and medium-sized business, government, and large enterprise customers.