Research Analysts Issue Forecasts for BCE FY2025 Earnings

BCE Inc. (NYSE:BCE) (TSE:BCE) – Investment analysts at Scotiabank decreased their FY2025 EPS estimates for BCE in a report issued on Wednesday, March 19th. Scotiabank analyst M. Yaghi now anticipates that the utilities provider will post earnings of $1.96 per share for the year, down from their previous forecast of $2.00. The consensus estimate for BCE’s current full-year earnings is $1.94 per share.

BCE (NYSE:BCE) (TSE:BCE) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The utilities provider reported $0.56 earnings per share 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%.

BCE has been the subject of several other reports. National Bankshares reiterated a “sector perform” rating on shares of BCE in a research note on Tuesday, March 11th. Bank of America lowered shares of BCE from a “neutral” rating to an “underperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. Barclays restated an “underweight” rating on shares of BCE in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. Royal Bank of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating and set a $39.00 price objective on shares of BCE in a research report on Tuesday, February 25th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. downgraded BCE from a “neutral” rating to an “underweight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating, one has assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $40.00.

BCE Price Performance

BCE opened at $22.54 on Monday. BCE has a 12-month low of $21.87 and a 12-month high of $36.17. The company has a market cap of $20.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 187.83, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.13 and a beta of 0.57. 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 fifty day simple moving average of $23.59 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $27.22.

BCE Cuts Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be paid a dividend of $0.6965 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. This represents a $2.79 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 12.36%. BCE’s dividend payout ratio is presently 2,291.67%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On BCE

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Bernard Wealth Management Corp. bought a new position in BCE in the fourth quarter valued at about $26,000. Allworth Financial LP increased its position in shares of BCE by 217.6% during the 4th quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 1,153 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 790 shares during the last quarter. WealthCollab LLC bought a new position in shares of BCE in the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its stake in shares of BCE by 1,147.3% in the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,397 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 1,285 shares during the period. Finally, MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB boosted its holdings in shares of BCE by 67.6% in the fourth quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 1,981 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $46,000 after buying an additional 799 shares during the last quarter. 41.46% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.