BCE Inc. (BCE) To Go Ex-Dividend on December 16th

BCE Inc. (NYSE:BCE) (TSE:BCE) declared a quarterly dividend on Thursday, November 7th,Zacks Dividends reports. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 16th will be paid a dividend of 0.737 per share by the utilities provider on Wednesday, January 15th. This represents a $2.95 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 11.55%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 16th. This is a boost from BCE’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.73.

BCE has increased its dividend by an average of 4.9% per year over the last three years. BCE has a payout ratio of 137.3% indicating that the company cannot currently cover its dividend with earnings alone and is relying on its balance sheet to cover its dividend payments. Equities analysts expect BCE to earn $2.11 per share next year, which means the company may not be able to cover its $2.80 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 132.7%.

BCE Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:BCE opened at $25.52 on Friday. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $29.51 and its 200 day simple moving average is $32.40. The company has a market cap of $23.28 billion, a P/E ratio of 364.50, a PEG ratio of 4.04 and a beta of 0.54. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.26, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a current ratio of 0.62. BCE has a one year low of $25.24 and a one year high of $41.77.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have recently commented on BCE shares. Canaccord Genuity Group reissued a “hold” rating on shares of BCE in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. Canaccord Genuity Group cut shares of BCE from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. Edward Jones downgraded BCE from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price target on BCE from $48.00 to $51.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, September 19th. Finally, Barclays lowered their price objective on BCE from $34.00 to $30.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, November 11th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, one has given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $45.00.

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.