BCE (TSE:BCE) Stock Crosses Above Two Hundred Day Moving Average on Analyst Downgrade

Key Points

• BCE Inc.'s share price has crossed above its 200-day moving average after being upgraded by Desjardins from a hold rating to a buy rating, with a new price target of C$40.00.
• The company is currently facing mixed ratings from analysts, with a consensus rating of "Hold" and a target price averaging C$34.21.
• BCE recently declared a quarterly dividend of $0.4375 per share, resulting in a high dividend payout ratio of 1,338.57%.

BCE Inc. (TSE:BCE - Get Free Report) NYSE: BCE passed above its 200-day moving average during trading on Tuesday after TD Securities raised their price target on the stock from C$33.00 to C$35.00. The stock has a 200-day moving average of C$31.91 and traded as high as C$33.19. TD Securities currently has a hold rating on the stock. BCE shares last traded at C$32.45, with a volume of 3,224,741 shares.

A number of other equities analysts also recently issued reports on BCE. Desjardins upgraded BCE from a "hold" rating to a "moderate buy" rating and increased their price objective for the stock from C$39.00 to C$40.00 in a report on Tuesday. UBS Group decreased their price target on shares of BCE from C$34.00 to C$32.00 in a research note on Wednesday, May 21st. National Bankshares set a C$35.00 price target on shares of BCE and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, June 6th. Royal Bank Of Canada cut their price objective on shares of BCE from C$37.00 to C$35.00 and set a "sector perform" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 9th. Finally, CIBC lowered their target price on shares of BCE from C$52.00 to C$33.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, July 3rd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating, one has given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of C$34.38.

BCE Stock Up 2.6%

The business has a 50-day moving average of C$31.46 and a 200 day moving average of C$31.91. The company has a market capitalization of C$30.35 billion, a PE ratio of 112.42, a P/E/G ratio of 4.67 and a beta of 0.48. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 226.73, a current ratio of 0.62 and a quick ratio of 0.43.

BCE Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 15th will be paid a $0.4375 dividend. This represents a $1.75 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.2%. BCE's payout ratio is 1,338.57%.

About BCE

BCE is both a wireless and internet service provider, offering wireless, broadband, television, and landline phone services in Canada. It is one of the big three national wireless carriers, with its roughly 10 million customers constituting about 30% of the market. It is also the ILEC (incumbent local exchange carrierthe legacy telephone provider) throughout much of the eastern half of Canada, including in the most populous Canadian provincesOntario and Quebec.