Desjardins Cuts BCE (TSE:BCE) Price Target to C$41.50

Key Points

• Desjardins cut its price target on BCE from C$42.00 to C$41.50 while keeping a "buy" rating, a level that implies roughly 24.92% upside from the prior close.
• Analyst views are mixed — RBC and Scotiabank recently raised targets while TD downgraded BCE to "hold"; the consensus is a Moderate Buy with an average target of C$37.25.
• BCE shares traded at C$33.22 (down ~1.6%), with a low PE of 4.89 and market cap of about C$30.98 billion, trading closer to its 12‑month low (C$28.73) than its high (C$36.25).

BCE (TSE:BCE - Get Free Report) NYSE: BCE had its price target decreased by equities researchers at Desjardins from C$42.00 to C$41.50 in a research note issued to investors on Tuesday,BayStreet.CA reports. The firm currently has a "buy" rating on the stock. Desjardins' price target would indicate a potential upside of 24.92% from the stock's previous close.

Other analysts have also recently issued reports about the company. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their price target on BCE from C$38.00 to C$39.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 17th. Scotiabank upped their price target on BCE from C$39.50 to C$41.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on BCE from C$33.00 to C$37.00 in a research note on Friday, February 6th. Barclays raised BCE from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 27th. Finally, TD Securities cut BCE from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and lowered their target price for the stock from C$41.00 to C$37.00 in a research note on Thursday, April 2nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have given a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of C$37.25.

BCE Trading Down 1.6%

Shares of BCE stock traded down C$0.55 on Tuesday, reaching C$33.22. The company had a trading volume of 3,198,234 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,704,074. The company has a current ratio of 0.58, a quick ratio of 0.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 179.16. The stock has a market cap of C$30.98 billion, a PE ratio of 4.89, a PEG ratio of 4.67 and a beta of 0.34. The company has a 50-day moving average of C$35.18 and a 200-day moving average of C$33.51. BCE has a 12 month low of C$28.73 and a 12 month high of C$36.25.

BCE (TSE:BCE - Get Free Report) NYSE: BCE last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, March 6th. The company reported C$0.69 EPS for the quarter. The company had revenue of C$6.40 billion during the quarter. BCE had a return on equity of 31.99% and a net margin of 26.40%. On average, equities analysts forecast that BCE will post 3.1120864 earnings per share for the current year.

About BCE

Bell Media is Canada's leading media and entertainment company with a portfolio of assets in premium video, audio, out-of-home advertising, and digital media. This includes Canada's most-watched television network, CTV; the largest Canadian-owned video streamer, Crave, with a premium add-on to include STARZ; a powerful suite of specialty channels; the most-trusted news brand, CTV News; Canada's cross-platform sports leaders, TSN and RDS; leading out-of-home advertising network, Astral; Québec's fast-growing conventional French-language network, Noovo; the country's leading radio and podcast app, iHeartRadio Canada; and a range of award-winning original productions, brands, and services.

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