Brokerages Set BCE Inc. (NYSE:BCE) PT at $40.00

BCE Inc. (NYSE:BCE) (TSE:BCE) has earned a consensus recommendation of “Reduce” from the thirteen ratings firms that are presently covering the stock, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating, one has assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong 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 $40.00.

BCE has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $39.00 price target on shares of BCE in a research note on Tuesday, February 25th. Morgan Stanley began coverage on shares of BCE in a research report on Monday, December 16th. They issued an “underweight” rating on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut shares of BCE from a “neutral” rating to an “underweight” rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. National Bankshares reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating on shares of BCE in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. Finally, Barclays reissued an “underweight” rating on shares of BCE in a report on Tuesday, January 21st.

BCE Stock Performance

Shares of BCE stock opened at $21.83 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $20.12 billion, a P/E ratio of 181.92, a PEG ratio of 4.13 and a beta of 0.57. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $23.55 and a 200 day moving average price of $26.74. The company has a current ratio of 0.62, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.26. BCE has a 12 month low of $21.62 and a 12 month high of $36.17.

BCE (NYSE:BCE) (TSE:BCE) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The utilities provider reported $0.56 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.53 by $0.03. BCE had a return on equity of 17.89% and a net margin of 0.99%. Sell-side analysts predict that BCE will post 1.94 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

BCE Cuts Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Investors of record on Friday, March 14th will be issued a dividend of $0.6965 per share. This represents a $2.79 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 12.76%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. BCE’s dividend payout ratio is currently 2,291.67%.

Institutional Trading of BCE

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC increased its holdings in shares of BCE by 1.2% in the fourth quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 43,402 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,006,000 after purchasing an additional 520 shares during the period. FMR LLC grew its position in BCE by 6.8% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 9,307 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $324,000 after buying an additional 596 shares during the last quarter. Bridgewater Associates LP increased its stake in BCE by 4.7% in the 4th quarter. Bridgewater Associates LP now owns 13,655 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $316,000 after buying an additional 614 shares during the period. D.A. Davidson & CO. raised its position in BCE by 3.0% during the 4th quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. now owns 23,835 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $552,000 after buying an additional 691 shares during the last quarter. Finally, State Street Corp lifted its stake in shares of BCE by 0.5% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 148,741 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $5,286,000 after acquiring an additional 749 shares during the period. 41.46% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About BCE

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.