BMO Capital Markets Raises BCE (TSE:BCE) Price Target to C$51.00

BCE (TSE:BCE) (NYSE:BCE) had its price objective raised by BMO Capital Markets from C$48.00 to C$51.00 in a research report released on Thursday, BayStreet.CA reports.

Other research analysts have also recently issued research reports about the stock. Desjardins boosted their price objective on shares of BCE from C$48.00 to C$51.00 and gave the company a hold rating in a report on Friday, August 2nd. Cormark decreased their price target on shares of BCE from C$53.00 to C$52.00 in a report on Friday, August 2nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on BCE from C$46.00 to C$47.00 and gave the stock a neutral rating in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. TD Securities lifted their target price on BCE from C$47.00 to C$48.00 and gave the stock a hold rating in a report on Monday, July 22nd. Finally, National Bankshares increased their price target on BCE from C$50.00 to C$52.00 in a report on Thursday. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of Hold and an average target price of C$51.17.

BCE Stock Performance

Shares of BCE stock opened at C$47.56 on Thursday. The firm has a fifty day moving average of C$46.95 and a two-hundred day moving average of C$46.16. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 197.43, a quick ratio of 0.43 and a current ratio of 0.65. The stock has a market capitalization of C$43.39 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.12, a PEG ratio of 1.90 and a beta of 0.48. BCE has a 52 week low of C$42.58 and a 52 week high of C$56.18.

BCE (TSE:BCE) (NYSE:BCE) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 1st. The company reported C$0.78 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of C$0.80 by C($0.02). BCE had a net margin of 8.75% and a return on equity of 10.63%. The company had revenue of C$6.01 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of C$6.07 billion. As a group, equities research analysts predict that BCE will post 2.991195 EPS for the current year.

BCE Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, October 15th will be given a dividend of $0.998 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 16th. This represents a $3.99 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 8.39%. BCE’s dividend payout ratio is currently 185.58%.

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.