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

BCE Inc. (NYSE:BCE) (TSE:BCE) has received a consensus recommendation of “Hold” from the twelve ratings firms that are covering the firm, MarketBeat reports. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. The average 12 month price target among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $40.00.

Several equities research analysts have commented on BCE shares. Barclays reaffirmed an “underweight” rating on shares of BCE in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. Bank of America downgraded BCE from a “neutral” rating to an “underperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. National Bankshares reissued a “sector perform” rating on shares of BCE in a research note on Tuesday, March 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered BCE from a “neutral” rating to an “underweight” rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Finally, National Bank Financial upgraded BCE from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 3rd.

BCE Stock Performance

Shares of BCE stock opened at $21.89 on Wednesday. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $22.76 and a two-hundred day moving average of $24.95. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.26, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a current ratio of 0.62. The stock has a market capitalization of $20.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 182.42, a PEG ratio of 4.13 and a beta of 0.56. BCE has a 52 week low of $20.28 and a 52 week high of $36.17.

BCE (NYSE:BCE) (TSE:BCE) last issued its 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%. As a group, equities research analysts predict that BCE will post 1.94 EPS for the current year.

BCE Cuts Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Investors of record on Friday, March 14th were issued a dividend of $0.6965 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 14th. This represents a $2.79 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 12.73%. BCE’s payout ratio is presently 2,291.67%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On BCE

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of BCE. Fiduciary Alliance LLC grew its stake in shares of BCE by 5.2% during the 1st quarter. Fiduciary Alliance LLC now owns 10,448 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $240,000 after acquiring an additional 519 shares in the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC increased its stake in BCE by 1.2% in the 4th quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 43,402 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,006,000 after buying an additional 520 shares during the last quarter. Bridgewater Associates LP lifted its position in BCE by 4.7% during the 4th quarter. Bridgewater Associates LP now owns 13,655 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $316,000 after buying an additional 614 shares in the last quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. boosted its stake in shares of 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 grew its holdings 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 valued at $5,286,000 after acquiring an additional 749 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 41.46% of the company’s stock.

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.