BCE (TSE:BCE) Shares Pass Above 200-Day Moving Average - What's Next?

Key Points

• BCE Inc.'s stock price recently surpassed its200-day moving average of C$31.89, trading as high as C$32.20 before settling at C$32.15 with substantial trading volume.
• Recent analyst reports have mostly set target prices between C$35.00 and C$41.50, indicating a mix of ratings including "neutral", "hold", and "outperform".
• BCE announced a quarterly dividend of $0.4375 per share, reflecting an annualized payout of $1.75 and a dividend yield of 5.4%, with a payout ratio of 745.65%.

BCE Inc. (TSE:BCE - Get Free Report) NYSE: BCE's stock price passed above its two hundred day moving average during trading on Wednesday . The stock has a two hundred day moving average of C$31.89 and traded as high as C$32.20. BCE shares last traded at C$32.15, with a volume of 2,791,191 shares traded.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

BCE has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. CIBC boosted their target price on BCE from C$35.00 to C$36.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, August 22nd. TD Securities boosted their target price on BCE from C$33.00 to C$35.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, August 8th. National Bankshares set a C$35.00 target price on BCE and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 12th. Scotiabank boosted their target price on BCE from C$39.50 to C$41.50 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, September 8th. Finally, Desjardins boosted their price target on BCE from C$40.00 to C$40.50 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Sunday, August 10th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have given a Buy rating, seven have issued a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of C$34.88.

BCE Trading Down 0.2%

The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of C$33.49 and a 200-day simple moving average of C$31.89. The firm has a market capitalization of C$29.64 billion, a P/E ratio of 69.89, a P/E/G ratio of 4.67 and a beta of 0.65. The company has a current ratio of 0.62, a quick ratio of 0.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 226.73.

BCE Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 15th. Investors of record on Wednesday, October 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.4375 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 15th. This represents a $1.75 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.4%. BCE's payout ratio is 745.65%.

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.

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