Desjardins Has Bearish Outlook for BCE FY2024 Earnings

BCE Inc. (NYSE:BCE) (TSE:BCE) – Investment analysts at Desjardins lowered their FY2024 EPS estimates for shares of BCE in a research note issued on Tuesday, November 5th. Desjardins analyst J. Dubreuil now forecasts that the utilities provider will earn $2.14 per share for the year, down from their prior forecast of $2.17. The consensus estimate for BCE’s current full-year earnings is $2.20 per share. Desjardins also issued estimates for BCE’s FY2025 earnings at $2.10 EPS.

Several other equities analysts have also issued reports on BCE. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price target on BCE from $48.00 to $51.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, September 19th. Edward Jones lowered BCE from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Canaccord Genuity Group cut BCE from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Canaccord Genuity Group reissued a “hold” rating on shares of BCE in a report on Tuesday. Finally, National Bank Financial cut shares of BCE from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, September 30th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, one has given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $46.33.

BCE Stock Down 2.3 %

Shares of BCE opened at $28.09 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.00, a quick ratio of 0.62 and a current ratio of 0.65. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $33.87 and a 200-day simple moving average of $33.64. BCE has a 52 week low of $27.29 and a 52 week high of $41.77. The firm has a market capitalization of $25.63 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.67, a P/E/G ratio of 4.87 and a beta of 0.59.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On BCE

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in BCE. ESL Trust Services LLC bought a new position in BCE during the 1st quarter valued at about $31,000. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV raised its stake in shares of BCE by 3,480.0% in the second quarter. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV now owns 1,074 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $35,000 after acquiring an additional 1,044 shares during the last quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC boosted its holdings in shares of BCE by 121.2% in the 3rd quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC now owns 1,232 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $43,000 after acquiring an additional 675 shares in the last quarter. Brown Lisle Cummings Inc. grew its position in BCE by 60.0% during the 2nd quarter. Brown Lisle Cummings Inc. now owns 1,600 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $52,000 after acquiring an additional 600 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC increased its holdings in BCE by 321.0% during the 3rd quarter. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC now owns 1,663 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $58,000 after purchasing an additional 1,268 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.