BCE (TSE:BCE) Sets New 1-Year Low – Here’s What Happened

BCE Inc. (TSE:BCE) (NYSE:BCE) hit a new 52-week low during mid-day trading on Thursday . The company traded as low as C$37.70 and last traded at C$37.71, with a volume of 4181923 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at C$38.09.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on shares of BCE from C$47.00 to C$41.00 in a research note on Friday, November 8th. Cormark cut their target price on shares of BCE from C$53.00 to C$52.00 in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. Desjardins raised their target price on shares of BCE from C$48.00 to C$51.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. National Bank Financial cut shares of BCE from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, September 30th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada cut their target price on shares of BCE from C$47.00 to C$45.00 in a research note on Monday, November 11th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, BCE has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of C$45.36.

BCE Stock Up 0.2 %

The business’s fifty day moving average is C$45.10 and its two-hundred day moving average is C$45.64. The company has a market cap of C$34.49 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.59, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.67 and a beta of 0.48. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 197.43, a quick ratio of 0.43 and a current ratio of 0.65.

BCE Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 16th will be given a dividend of $0.9975 per share. This represents a $3.99 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 10.55%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 16th. BCE’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 185.58%.

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.