Zacks Research Comments on BCE’s Q1 Earnings (NYSE:BCE)

BCE Inc. (NYSE:BCE) (TSE:BCE) – Research analysts at Zacks Research cut their Q1 2025 earnings per share (EPS) estimates for BCE in a research note issued on Tuesday, February 25th. Zacks Research analyst R. Department now expects that the utilities provider will post earnings of $0.47 per share for the quarter, down from their previous forecast of $0.50. The consensus estimate for BCE’s current full-year earnings is $1.94 per share. Zacks Research also issued estimates for BCE’s Q2 2025 earnings at $0.50 EPS, FY2025 earnings at $2.00 EPS, Q1 2026 earnings at $0.48 EPS, Q2 2026 earnings at $0.48 EPS, Q3 2026 earnings at $0.49 EPS, Q4 2026 earnings at $0.48 EPS, FY2026 earnings at $1.93 EPS and FY2027 earnings at $1.95 EPS.

BCE (NYSE:BCE) (TSE:BCE) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The utilities provider reported $0.56 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.53 by $0.03. BCE had a return on equity of 17.89% and a net margin of 0.99%.

A number of other analysts also recently weighed in on BCE. Bank of America downgraded BCE from a “neutral” rating to an “underperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. Barclays reiterated an “underweight” rating on shares of BCE in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. downgraded BCE from a “neutral” rating to an “underweight” rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Canaccord Genuity Group downgraded BCE from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of BCE in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating, one has given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $40.00.

BCE Stock Down 1.2 %

BCE stock opened at $23.11 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.26, a current ratio of 0.62 and a quick ratio of 0.60. BCE has a 1-year low of $21.87 and a 1-year high of $37.33. The company has a market cap of $21.30 billion, a PE ratio of 192.54, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.13 and a beta of 0.57. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $23.40 and its 200 day moving average price is $28.64.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On BCE

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Bernard Wealth Management Corp. purchased a new position in shares of BCE in the 4th quarter worth about $26,000. Allworth Financial LP raised its holdings in shares of BCE by 217.6% in the 4th quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 1,153 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 790 shares during the period. WealthCollab LLC purchased a new position in shares of BCE in the 4th quarter worth about $27,000. Blue Trust Inc. raised its holdings in shares of BCE by 1,147.3% in the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,397 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 1,285 shares during the period. Finally, Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. purchased a new position in shares of BCE in the 3rd quarter worth about $51,000. 41.46% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

BCE Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Investors of record on Friday, March 14th will be paid a $0.6965 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. This represents a $2.79 annualized dividend and a yield of 12.06%. BCE’s payout ratio is currently 2,350.00%.

About BCE

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.