Weiss Ratings Reiterates Sell (D+) Rating for BCE (NYSE:BCE)

Key Points

• Weiss Ratings reiterated a "Sell (D+)" rating for BCE, indicating ongoing concerns about the company's performance and outlook.
• Despite this negative rating, other analysts have given mixed reviews, with a consensus rating of "Hold" and a target price of $33.50.
• BCE reported missed earnings per share of $0.46 for the last quarter, significantly below the consensus estimate of $0.52.

BCE (NYSE:BCE - Get Free Report) TSE: BCE's stock had its "sell (d+)" rating reiterated by research analysts at Weiss Ratings in a report issued on Friday,Weiss Ratings reports.

Several other research analysts have also commented on the company. CIBC reiterated a "neutral" rating on shares of BCE in a research report on Friday, August 22nd. Cibc World Mkts lowered BCE from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 3rd. National Bankshares reiterated an "outperform" rating on shares of BCE in a research report on Friday, August 15th. Desjardins upgraded BCE from a "hold" rating to a "moderate buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 5th. Finally, TD Securities upgraded BCE from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 15th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have issued a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and five have assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $33.50.

BCE Price Performance

Shares of BCE stock traded down $0.06 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $23.81. The stock had a trading volume of 1,931,104 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,258,497. BCE has a one year low of $20.28 and a one year high of $33.22. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.17, a current ratio of 0.61 and a quick ratio of 0.57. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $24.08 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $23.05. The stock has a market capitalization of $22.20 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 82.09, a PEG ratio of 4.09 and a beta of 0.63.

BCE (NYSE:BCE - Get Free Report) TSE: BCE last issued its earnings results on Thursday, August 7th. The utilities provider reported $0.46 earnings per share (EPS) 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 firm had revenue of $4.47 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.91 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.78 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 1.3% compared to the same quarter last year. BCE has set its FY 2025 guidance at 1.910-1.980 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that BCE will post 1.94 EPS for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On BCE

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in BCE. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its position in shares of BCE by 170.7% in the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 11,679,620 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $268,164,000 after acquiring an additional 7,365,253 shares during the period. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership increased its position in shares of BCE by 99.4% in the 2nd quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 14,006,153 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $310,682,000 after acquiring an additional 6,981,281 shares during the period. Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec increased its position in shares of BCE by 36.1% in the 1st quarter. Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec now owns 25,249,300 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $579,458,000 after acquiring an additional 6,697,900 shares during the period. Federation des caisses Desjardins du Quebec increased its position in shares of BCE by 94.4% in the 1st quarter. Federation des caisses Desjardins du Quebec now owns 10,649,978 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $243,966,000 after acquiring an additional 5,171,655 shares during the period. Finally, Canada Pension Plan Investment Board boosted its holdings in BCE by 50.9% in the first quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 14,181,568 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $325,559,000 after purchasing an additional 4,783,232 shares during the last quarter. 41.46% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

BCE Company Profile

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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