BCE (NYSE:BCE) Updates FY 2025 Earnings Guidance

BCE (NYSE:BCE) (TSE:BCE) issued an update on its FY 2025 earnings guidance on Thursday morning. The company provided earnings per share guidance of 1.890-2.000 for the period, compared to the consensus earnings per share estimate of 2.070. The company issued revenue guidance of $16.9 billion-$17.3 billion, compared to the consensus revenue estimate of $17.4 billion.

BCE Price Performance

BCE stock traded down $1.38 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $22.14. The stock had a trading volume of 7,888,813 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,432,294. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.26, a current ratio of 0.62 and a quick ratio of 0.60. The stock has a market capitalization of $20.20 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 184.49, a PEG ratio of 3.91 and a beta of 0.57. BCE has a 1-year low of $21.87 and a 1-year high of $38.70. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $24.01 and its two-hundred day moving average is $29.74.

BCE (NYSE:BCE) (TSE:BCE) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The utilities provider reported $0.56 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.53 by $0.03. BCE had a return on equity of 17.89% and a net margin of 0.99%. As a group, analysts predict that BCE will post 2 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

BCE Cuts Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be given a $0.6965 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. This represents a $2.79 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 12.58%. BCE’s dividend payout ratio is currently 2,350.00%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

BCE has been the topic of several recent research reports. Canaccord Genuity Group downgraded BCE from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. Barclays restated an “underweight” rating on shares of BCE in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on BCE in a research report on Monday, December 16th. They issued an “underweight” rating on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. downgraded BCE from a “neutral” rating to an “underweight” rating in a research report on Friday. Finally, Bank of America downgraded BCE from a “neutral” rating to an “underperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, one has issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $45.00.

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.