BCE, Inc. (NYSE:BCE) to Issue Quarterly Dividend of C$0.44

Key Points

• BCE, Inc. declared a quarterly dividend of C$0.44, scheduled for distribution on October 15th to stockholders of record as of September 15th, representing a 7.2% yield.
• The company reported Q2 earnings per share of $0.46, falling short of expectations, with a revenue of $4.47 billion against forecasts of $5.91 billion.
• BCE's current payout ratio stands at 67.2%, indicating that the dividend is adequately covered by earnings, with analysts forecasting a future EPS of $1.94.

BCE, Inc. (NYSE:BCE - Get Free Report) TSE: BCE declared a quarterly dividend on Wednesday, August 6th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 15th will be given a dividend of 0.4375 per share by the utilities provider on Wednesday, October 15th. This represents a c) annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 7.2%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 15th.

BCE has a payout ratio of 67.2% meaning its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Equities analysts expect BCE to earn $1.94 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $1.27 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 65.5%.

BCE Stock Down 0.6%

BCE stock traded down $0.14 on Friday, hitting $24.17. 2,360,672 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,733,343. BCE has a 12-month low of $20.28 and a 12-month high of $36.17. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $24.38 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $23.02. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.17, a quick ratio of 0.57 and a current ratio of 0.61. The stock has a market cap of $22.53 billion, a P/E ratio of 83.33, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.09 and a beta of 0.63.

BCE (NYSE:BCE - Get Free Report) TSE: BCE last announced its earnings results on Thursday, August 7th. The utilities provider reported $0.46 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.52 by ($0.06). BCE had a return on equity of 18.89% and a net margin of 1.96%.The business had revenue of $4.47 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $5.91 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.78 earnings per share. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 1.3% compared to the same quarter last year. BCE has set its FY 2025 guidance at 1.910-1.980 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that BCE will post 1.94 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On BCE

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Bernard Wealth Management Corp. acquired a new stake in shares of BCE in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Hilltop National Bank acquired a new stake in shares of BCE in the second quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. increased its holdings in shares of BCE by 2,459.6% in the second quarter. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. now owns 1,459 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 1,402 shares during the last quarter. SVB Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in shares of BCE in the first quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Finally, Trust Co. of Toledo NA OH acquired a new stake in shares of BCE in the second quarter valued at approximately $40,000. 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.

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