Analysts Set BCE, Inc. (NYSE:BCE) Price Target at $28.00

BCE, Inc. (NYSE:BCE) (TSE:BCE) has been given an average rating of “Moderate Buy” by the nine ratings firms that are covering the firm, Marketbeat Ratings reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, two have given a hold recommendation, five have issued a buy recommendation and one has given a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average twelve-month target price among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $28.00.

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. Barrington Research upgraded BCE from an “underperform” rating to an “equal weight” rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $21.00 to $26.00 in a research report on Tuesday, January 27th. TD Securities reissued a “buy” rating on shares of BCE in a report on Tuesday, February 17th. Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce raised BCE from a “neutral” rating to a “sector outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 9th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets upgraded BCE from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 11th.

BCE Stock Up 1.3%

BCE stock opened at $25.90 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $24.15 billion, a P/E ratio of 5.27 and a beta of 0.60. The company has a current ratio of 0.58, a quick ratio of 0.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.74. BCE has a twelve month low of $20.28 and a twelve month high of $26.52. The company’s 50 day moving average is $25.33 and its two-hundred day moving average is $24.11.

BCE (NYSE:BCE) (TSE:BCE) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 5th. The utilities provider reported $0.49 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.45 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $4.66 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.55 billion. BCE had a net margin of 26.14% and a return on equity of 15.39%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down .3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.79 EPS. BCE has set its FY 2026 guidance at 1.790-1.910 EPS. Research analysts expect that BCE will post 1.94 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

BCE Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 16th will be issued a $0.4375 dividend. This represents a $1.75 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 16th. BCE’s dividend payout ratio is presently 25.46%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On BCE

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd boosted its stake in BCE by 735.3% during the 3rd quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 1,161 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 1,022 shares during the period. Employees Retirement System of Texas acquired a new position in BCE in the fourth quarter valued at $28,000. JCIC Asset Management Inc. acquired a new position in BCE in the third quarter valued at $31,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of BCE by 1,642.0% in the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 1,411 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 1,330 shares during the last quarter. Finally, MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB raised its holdings in shares of BCE by 81.0% in the third quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 1,924 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $45,000 after buying an additional 861 shares during the last quarter. 41.46% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.