BCE Inc. (NYSE:BCE - Free Report) TSE: BCE - Equities research analysts at National Bank Financial dropped their FY2025 earnings per share (EPS) estimates for shares of BCE in a research note issued on Thursday, December 12th. National Bank Financial analyst A. Shine now anticipates that the utilities provider will post earnings per share of $1.82 for the year, down from their previous estimate of $1.89. National Bank Financial currently has a "Hold" rating on the stock. The consensus estimate for BCE's current full-year earnings is $2.14 per share.
A number of other equities analysts also recently commented on BCE. Canaccord Genuity Group restated a "hold" rating on shares of BCE in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. Edward Jones downgraded shares of BCE from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. Canaccord Genuity Group cut BCE from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. Barclays reduced their price target on BCE from $34.00 to $30.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Monday, November 11th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets upped their price objective on BCE from $48.00 to $51.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a report on Thursday, September 19th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, one has assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $45.00.
View Our Latest Stock Report on BCE
Shares of NYSE BCE opened at $25.52 on Monday. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $29.51 and a 200 day moving average price of $32.39. BCE has a 1-year low of $25.24 and a 1-year high of $41.77. 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 company has a market cap of $23.28 billion, a PE ratio of 364.57, a P/E/G ratio of 4.04 and a beta of 0.54.
Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of BCE. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC grew its holdings in BCE by 121.2% in the third quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC now owns 1,232 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $43,000 after purchasing an additional 675 shares during the last quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. purchased a new position in BCE during the 3rd quarter valued at about $51,000. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC raised its position in BCE by 321.0% during the third quarter. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC now owns 1,663 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $58,000 after acquiring an additional 1,268 shares during the last quarter. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC acquired a new position in BCE during the third quarter worth about $65,000. Finally, Fairscale Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of BCE in the second quarter valued at about $76,000. 41.46% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.
The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Investors of record on Monday, December 16th will be issued a $0.737 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 16th. This represents a $2.95 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 11.55%. This is a boost from BCE's previous quarterly dividend of $0.73. BCE's dividend payout ratio is currently 4,214.29%.
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.
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