BCE, Inc. (NYSE:BCE) Given Average Rating of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Shares of BCE, Inc. (NYSE:BCE) (TSE:BCE) have been given an average rating of “Moderate Buy” by the nine research firms that are covering the company, Marketbeat.com reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, three have assigned a hold recommendation, four have assigned a buy recommendation and one has issued a strong buy recommendation on the company. The average 1-year target price among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $28.6667.

A number of research firms have commented on BCE. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their price objective on shares of BCE from $38.00 to $39.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 17th. Scotiabank reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of BCE in a research note on Monday, January 12th. TD Securities downgraded shares of BCE from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 2nd. Barrington Research upgraded shares of BCE from an “underperform” rating to an “equal weight” rating and increased their price objective for the company from $21.00 to $26.00 in a research note on Tuesday, January 27th. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of BCE from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 4th.

BCE Price Performance

Shares of BCE stock opened at $24.15 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $22.52 billion, a PE ratio of 4.91 and a beta of 0.48. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $24.91 and a 200-day simple moving average of $24.30. The company has a current ratio of 0.58, a quick ratio of 0.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.74. BCE has a twelve month low of $21.09 and a twelve month high of $26.52.

BCE (NYSE:BCE) (TSE:BCE) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The utilities provider reported $0.46 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.42 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $4.43 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.38 billion. BCE had a net margin of 25.66% and a return on equity of 14.35%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 4.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.69 earnings per share. BCE has set its FY 2026 guidance at 1.790-1.910 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that BCE will post 1.88 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

BCE Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.4375 per share. This represents a $1.75 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 7.2%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 15th. BCE’s dividend payout ratio is 26.02%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in BCE. Canerector Inc. boosted its stake in BCE by 3,152.0% during the 3rd quarter. Canerector Inc. now owns 8,130,000 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $190,161,000 after acquiring an additional 7,880,000 shares during the last quarter. Quadrature Capital Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of BCE during the fourth quarter worth $100,999,000. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of BCE during the fourth quarter worth $91,811,000. Caisse de depot et placement du Quebec raised its holdings in shares of BCE by 9.7% during the third quarter. Caisse de depot et placement du Quebec now owns 34,107,306 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $797,161,000 after purchasing an additional 3,024,110 shares during the period. Finally, Cullen Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of BCE by 77.6% during the third quarter. Cullen Capital Management LLC now owns 6,389,865 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $149,459,000 after purchasing an additional 2,792,485 shares during the period. 41.46% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Key Headlines Impacting BCE

Here are the key news stories impacting BCE this week:

• Positive Sentiment: BCE said Q1 revenue rose 4% year over year, helped by stronger Bell CTS U.S./Ziply and Media performance, and free cash flow improved despite higher capital spending. Article title
• Positive Sentiment: Management pointed to AI-driven demand and said BCE is expanding its Bell Business Markets offering, highlighting a growth area that could support future revenue. Article title
• Neutral Sentiment: The company also announced a quarterly dividend of C$0.4375 per share, which keeps BCE attractive for income-focused investors. Article title
• Neutral Sentiment: Shareholders approved the election of directors at the annual meeting, with all nominees receiving strong support. Article title
• Negative Sentiment: Adjusted EPS declined from a year earlier, and the company’s revenue and earnings guidance for FY2026 came in below consensus, which is likely pressuring the stock. Article title
• Negative Sentiment: Reports of employee firings tied to alleged attendance-policy violations may add to near-term headline risk, though the operational impact appears limited. Article title

About BCE

BCE Inc (NYSE: BCE) is a Canadian communications, media and entertainment company that operates through its primary subsidiaries, including Bell Canada and Bell Media. As a large integrated telecommunications provider, BCE delivers a broad range of connectivity services and content to residential, business and wholesale customers across Canada. The company combines network infrastructure with media assets to offer bundled communications and entertainment solutions.

On the services side, BCE provides fixed-line and wireless voice services, mobile data, high-speed internet, fibre and broadband access, and television services through platforms such as Bell Fibe and Bell TV.