BCE (TSE:BCE) Downgraded by National Bankshares to Sector Perform

BCE (TSE:BCE) (NYSE:BCE) was downgraded by equities research analysts at National Bankshares from an “outperform” rating to a “sector perform” rating in a report released on Tuesday, BayStreet.CA reports. They currently have a C$48.00 price objective on the stock, down from their previous price objective of C$52.00.

BCE has been the topic of several other research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of BCE from C$46.00 to C$47.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, August 2nd. TD Securities boosted their price target on shares of BCE from C$47.00 to C$48.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, July 22nd. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price objective on BCE from C$51.00 to C$53.00 in a research report on Thursday, September 19th. Cormark decreased their target price on BCE from C$53.00 to C$52.00 in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. Finally, BMO Capital Markets upped their price target on BCE from C$48.00 to C$51.00 in a research note on Thursday, September 19th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of C$51.00.

BCE Price Performance

The firm’s fifty day moving average price is C$47.22 and its two-hundred day moving average price is C$46.08. BCE has a 12-month low of C$42.58 and a 12-month high of C$56.18. The stock has a market cap of C$42.41 billion, a PE ratio of 21.57, a P/E/G ratio of 1.90 and a beta of 0.48. The company has a quick ratio of 0.43, a current ratio of 0.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 197.43.

BCE (TSE:BCE) (NYSE:BCE) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The company reported C$0.78 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of C$0.80 by C($0.02). BCE had a net margin of 8.75% and a return on equity of 10.63%. The business had revenue of C$6.01 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of C$6.07 billion. Sell-side analysts expect that BCE will post 3.0598958 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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.