BCE Inc. (TSE:BCE) Given Average Rating of “Hold” by Brokerages

Shares of BCE Inc. (TSE:BCE) (NYSE:BCE) have received a consensus rating of “Hold” from the eleven brokerages that are presently covering the company, Marketbeat reports. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month price objective among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is C$41.88.

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. TD Securities dropped their price objective on shares of BCE from C$37.00 to C$32.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on shares of BCE from C$41.00 to C$35.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 2nd. Canaccord Genuity Group lowered their target price on shares of BCE from C$41.00 to C$37.50 in a research note on Friday, November 8th. BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on shares of BCE from C$48.00 to C$51.00 in a research note on Thursday, September 19th. Finally, Scotiabank lowered their target price on shares of BCE from C$45.00 to C$42.00 in a research note on Tuesday, November 26th.

BCE Price Performance

TSE BCE opened at C$32.84 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 197.43, a quick ratio of 0.43 and a current ratio of 0.65. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is C$35.80 and its 200-day moving average price is C$42.41. BCE has a 52-week low of C$31.43 and a 52-week high of C$56.18. The company has a market cap of C$29.96 billion, a PE ratio of 15.27, a P/E/G ratio of 4.67 and a beta of 0.48.

BCE Cuts Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, January 15th were issued a $0.9975 dividend. 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 12.15%. BCE’s dividend payout ratio is currently 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.