BCE Inc. (TSE:BCE) Receives Average Recommendation of “Hold” from Analysts

BCE Inc. (TSE:BCE) (NYSE:BCE) has earned a consensus recommendation of “Hold” from the eleven analysts that are currently covering the firm, Marketbeat.com reports. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and one has issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 12 month price objective among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is C$43.38.

Several research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Scotiabank reduced their target price on BCE from C$45.00 to C$42.00 in a research report on Tuesday, November 26th. National Bank Financial lowered shares of BCE from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, September 30th. National Bankshares dropped their target price on shares of BCE from C$48.00 to C$42.00 in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. Canaccord Genuity Group cut their price target on shares of BCE from C$37.50 to C$33.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday. Finally, TD Securities lowered their price objective on shares of BCE from C$39.00 to C$37.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, December 3rd.

BCE Stock Performance

Shares of BCE stock opened at C$33.28 on Monday. BCE has a 12-month low of C$32.95 and a 12-month high of C$56.18. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is C$39.90 and its 200-day simple moving average is C$44.02. The company has a current ratio of 0.65, a quick ratio of 0.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 197.43. The company has a market cap of C$30.36 billion, a PE ratio of 15.48, a PEG ratio of 4.67 and a beta of 0.48.

BCE Cuts Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, January 15th will be paid a $0.9975 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 16th. This represents a $3.99 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 11.99%. BCE’s payout ratio is 185.58%.

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.