BCE (TSE:BCE) Price Target Cut to C$40.00 by Analysts at Scotiabank

BCE (TSE:BCE) (NYSE:BCE) had its target price lowered by Scotiabank from C$42.00 to C$40.00 in a research note issued to investors on Friday,BayStreet.CA reports. The firm currently has a sector perform rating on the stock.

Other research analysts have also issued reports about the company. Canaccord Genuity Group increased their target price on BCE from C$33.00 to C$33.50 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. downgraded BCE from a “neutral” rating to an “underweight” rating and cut their price objective for the stock from C$35.00 to C$29.00 in a report on Friday. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their target price on BCE from C$45.00 to C$41.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, December 18th. Barclays lowered shares of BCE from an “equal weight” rating to an “underperform” rating and cut their price target for the company from C$41.00 to C$30.00 in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, National Bankshares decreased their price objective on shares of BCE from C$37.00 to C$35.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 3rd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of C$40.42.

BCE Trading Down 6.2 %

TSE BCE opened at C$31.62 on Friday. The company has a market cap of C$28.85 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.71, a P/E/G ratio of 4.67 and a beta of 0.48. BCE has a 12 month low of C$31.43 and a 12 month high of C$52.01. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 197.43, a current ratio of 0.65 and a quick ratio of 0.43. The company has a 50-day moving average of C$34.53 and a 200-day moving average of C$41.31.

BCE (TSE:BCE) (NYSE:BCE) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The company reported C$0.75 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of C$0.77 by C($0.02). BCE had a return on equity of 10.63% and a net margin of 8.75%. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.81 EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that BCE will post 3.1120864 earnings per share for the current year.

BCE Cuts Dividend

The company also recently disclosed 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 was Monday, December 16th. This represents a $3.99 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 12.62%. 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.