BCE (NYSE:BCE) Releases Quarterly Earnings Results, Beats Estimates By $0.04 EPS

Key Points

• BCE beat quarterly earnings estimates, reporting $0.46 EPS versus the $0.42 consensus, while revenue came in at $4.43 billion, slightly above expectations. Revenue rose 4.0% year over year, though EPS was lower than the same quarter last year.
• The company raised its FY2026 guidance to an EPS range of 1.790 to 1.910, signaling management’s improved outlook despite mixed quarterly profitability trends.
• BCE highlighted strong growth in its AI and fiber initiatives, including a fully contracted 300 MW Saskatchewan AI data center project and continued momentum in residential fiber, internet, and streaming subscriber growth.

BCE (NYSE:BCE - Get Free Report) TSE: BCE issued its earnings results on Thursday. The utilities provider reported $0.46 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.42 by $0.04, Zacks reports. BCE had a net margin of 25.66% and a return on equity of 14.35%. The business had revenue of $4.43 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.38 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.69 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 4.0% on a year-over-year basis. BCE updated its FY 2026 guidance to 1.790-1.910 EPS.

Here are the key takeaways from BCE's conference call:

• Bell is aggressively scaling its AI strategy — a fully contracted 300 MW Saskatchewan AI data center is under construction and at full run rate is expected to contribute roughly CAD 500M revenue, CAD 400M EBITDA and >CAD 250M free cash flow at ~20% IRR; management says it has line-of-sight to monetize about 800 MW over time and raised its AI-powered solutions 2028 target to ~CAD 2B.
• Q1 financials were mixed — consolidated revenue grew 4% and adjusted EBITDA +2.9%, but adjusted EPS fell CAD 0.06 (higher D&A and interest), free cash flow edged up 0.8% to CAD 804M, margins dipped ~40 bps and net debt leverage was ~3.8x with a target to reach 3.5x by end-2027.
• Customer metrics show momentum — ~43,000 residential FTTH net adds in Canada (total fiber net adds ~50,000 including Ziply), internet revenue on North American fiber platforms +15% YoY, Crave subscribers +25% to 4.7M (D2C +59%), and improved video and postpaid wireless net adds despite a promotional Q1.
• Management is simplifying and reallocating capital — completed high-return disposals (MLSE, Bell Smart Home) and announced the CAD 675M Land Mobile Radio sale, cut legacy Canadian telecom CapEx by >CAD 2B since 2022, and is redeploying funds into higher-return AI Fabric and U.S. fiber growth initiatives.

BCE Stock Performance

BCE stock traded down $0.42 on Friday, hitting $24.15. The company's stock had a trading volume of 3,425,862 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,906,118. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $24.91 and a two-hundred day moving average of $24.30. BCE has a 1 year low of $21.09 and a 1 year high of $26.52. The stock has a market cap of $22.52 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 4.91 and a beta of 0.48. 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 Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Investors of record on Monday, June 15th will be given a $0.4375 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 15th. This represents a $1.75 annualized dividend and a yield of 7.2%. BCE's dividend payout ratio is 26.02%.

Institutional Trading of BCE

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of BCE. Quadrature Capital Ltd purchased a new stake in BCE in the 4th quarter valued at $100,999,000. Caisse de depot et placement du Quebec raised its position in BCE by 9.7% during the 3rd 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 buying an additional 3,024,110 shares during the last quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia raised its position in BCE by 15.1% during the 4th quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia now owns 17,136,466 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $408,749,000 after buying an additional 2,250,106 shares during the last quarter. FIL Ltd raised its position in BCE by 5.6% during the 4th quarter. FIL Ltd now owns 37,579,448 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $896,398,000 after buying an additional 1,992,000 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Picton Mahoney Asset Management raised its position in BCE by 234.3% during the 4th quarter. Picton Mahoney Asset Management now owns 1,963,939 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $46,913,000 after buying an additional 1,376,451 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 41.46% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on BCE. Barrington Research upgraded shares of BCE from an "underperform" rating to an "equal weight" rating and upped their target price for the company from $21.00 to $26.00 in a report on Tuesday, January 27th. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their target price on shares of BCE from $38.00 to $39.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, March 17th. TD Securities cut shares of BCE from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, April 2nd. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of BCE from a "sell (d+)" rating to a "hold (c-)" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 4th. Finally, Scotiabank restated an "outperform" rating on shares of BCE in a report on Monday, January 12th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have issued a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $28.67.

Trending Headlines about 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

BCE Company Profile

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.

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