BCE Inc. (NYSE:BCE) Given Consensus Recommendation of "Reduce" by Analysts

Shares of BCE Inc. (NYSE:BCE - Get Free Report) TSE: BCE have earned an average rating of "Reduce" from the thirteen brokerages that are covering the firm, MarketBeat reports. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating, one has issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating on the company. The average 1 year price target among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $40.00.

Several brokerages have weighed in on BCE. Bank of America downgraded BCE from a "neutral" rating to an "underperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. downgraded shares of BCE from a "neutral" rating to an "underweight" rating in a report on Friday, February 7th. Barclays reiterated an "underweight" rating on shares of BCE in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. National Bankshares reissued a "sector perform" rating on shares of BCE in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. Finally, Morgan Stanley started coverage on BCE in a research note on Monday, December 16th. They set an "underweight" rating for the company.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On BCE

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. National Bank of Canada FI lifted its stake in BCE by 4.8% in the 3rd quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 18,873,961 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $656,421,000 after acquiring an additional 864,472 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its position in shares of BCE by 25.3% in the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 3,657,533 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $127,282,000 after purchasing an additional 738,656 shares in the last quarter. BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp boosted its holdings in shares of BCE by 130.1% during the third quarter. BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp now owns 293,427 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $10,200,000 after purchasing an additional 165,881 shares during the period. Barclays PLC grew its position in BCE by 78.5% during the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 120,462 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $4,192,000 after purchasing an additional 52,966 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Janney Montgomery Scott LLC acquired a new position in BCE in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $9,522,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 41.46% of the company's stock.

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BCE Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE BCE traded down $0.95 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $21.83. The company's stock had a trading volume of 4,692,933 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,703,610. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.26, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a current ratio of 0.62. BCE has a 1-year low of $21.63 and a 1-year high of $36.17. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $23.55 and its 200-day moving average price is $26.74. The firm has a market cap of $20.12 billion, a P/E ratio of 181.92, a P/E/G ratio of 4.13 and a beta of 0.57.

BCE (NYSE:BCE - Get Free Report) TSE: BCE last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The utilities provider reported $0.56 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.53 by $0.03. BCE had a net margin of 0.99% and a return on equity of 17.89%. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that BCE will post 1.94 EPS 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 dividend of $0.6965 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. This represents a $2.79 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 12.76%. BCE's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 2,291.67%.

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.