BCE Inc. (NYSE:BCE) Receives $45.00 Consensus Target Price from Analysts

Shares of BCE Inc. (NYSE:BCE) (TSE:BCE) have been given a consensus rating of “Hold” by the eleven research firms that are covering the company, MarketBeat.com reports. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, one has given a buy recommendation and one has issued a strong buy recommendation on the company. The average twelve-month price objective among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $45.00.

BCE has been the subject of a number of research reports. Canaccord Genuity Group downgraded shares of BCE from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. Edward Jones cut shares of BCE from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. National Bank Financial downgraded shares of BCE from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, September 30th. Barclays reduced their target price on BCE from $34.00 to $30.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, November 11th. Finally, Cibc World Mkts raised shares of BCE from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, August 2nd.

BCE Stock Down 1.4 %

BCE stock opened at $26.63 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.62, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.26. The stock has a market capitalization of $24.29 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 380.43, a PEG ratio of 4.16 and a beta of 0.59. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $31.62 and a two-hundred day moving average of $33.05. BCE has a twelve month low of $26.45 and a twelve month high of $41.77.

BCE Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 16th will be given a $0.737 dividend. This is an increase from BCE’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.73. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 16th. This represents a $2.95 annualized dividend and a yield of 11.07%. BCE’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 4,228.57%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. AE Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in BCE by 2.6% in the second quarter. AE Wealth Management LLC now owns 14,383 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $466,000 after acquiring an additional 367 shares in the last quarter. Caldwell Sutter Capital Inc. raised its stake in shares of BCE by 3.9% in the 3rd quarter. Caldwell Sutter Capital Inc. now owns 11,856 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $413,000 after purchasing an additional 445 shares in the last quarter. First Affirmative Financial Network lifted its position in shares of BCE by 6.1% during the third quarter. First Affirmative Financial Network now owns 8,181 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $285,000 after purchasing an additional 472 shares during the last quarter. Prospera Financial Services Inc lifted its position in shares of BCE by 6.8% during the third quarter. Prospera Financial Services Inc now owns 7,534 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $262,000 after purchasing an additional 478 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Simplicity Wealth LLC grew its stake in BCE by 4.7% in the second quarter. Simplicity Wealth LLC now owns 11,331 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $367,000 after purchasing an additional 509 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other 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.