BCE Stock Recent News

BCE (BCE) doesn't possess the right combination of the two key ingredients for a likely earnings beat in its upcoming report. Get prepared with the key expectations.

BCE has fallen precipitously since our previous coverage. We examine the competition landscape and tell you why Quebecor's pricing won't last. We tell you why and how we substantially increased our allocation to the company.

MONTRÉAL, Jan. 21, 2025 /PRNewswire/ - BCE Inc. (TSX: BCE) (NYSE: BCE) today announced that 8,050 of its 8,779,487 fixed-rate Cumulative Redeemable First Preferred Shares, Series AF ("Series AF Preferred Shares") have been tendered for conversion on February 1, 2025, on a one-for-one basis, into floating-rate Cumulative Redeemable First Preferred Shares, Series AE ("Series AE Preferred Shares"). In addition, 2,479,334 of its 5,810,913 Series AE Preferred Shares have been tendered for conversion on February 1, 2025, on a one-for-one basis, into Series AF Preferred Shares.

The "RIG" portfolio aims for 50% income from defensive sectors and includes 83 stocks across 11+ sectors, focusing on investment-grade stocks. Defensive sectors include consumer staples, healthcare, utilities, and communication/telecom, with top-yield stocks like British American Tobacco and Pfizer. Groups 2 and 3 include defensive financials, bonds, ETFs, and preferred shares, contributing to stable income and meeting the 50% income goal.

BCE's recent 44% share price drop is due to concerns over the $7B Ziply acquisition and potential dividend cuts, but the core business remains strong. The Ziply deal offers growth opportunities in the U.S. fiber market, potentially boosting EBITDA and geographic diversification, despite higher capital intensity and execution risks. A dividend cut in 2026 is likely, which could free up cash for debt repayment and growth investments, potentially leading to a share price rebound.

National Bank lowered the firm's price target on BCE to C$35 from C$37 and keeps a Sector Perform rating on the shares.

MONTRÉAL, Jan. 2, 2025 /PRNewswire/ - BCE Inc. (TSX: BCE) (NYSE: BCE) will hold its fourth-quarter 2024 results and 2025 guidance conference call with the financial community on Thursday, February 6, 2025 at 8:00 am eastern. Participants will include Mirko Bibic, President and Chief Executive Officer, and Curtis Millen, Chief Financial Officer.

BCE has underperformed, down 14% this past year and nearly 35% in the last three, despite high dividend yields of 8.84%. Regulatory pressures and increased debt levels have raised concerns about dividend cuts, but payments have remained stable. Recent macroeconomic changes and strategic pivots suggest BCE is undervalued and can sustain dividends into 2025.

This article is part of our monthly series where we highlight five large-cap, relatively safe, dividend-paying companies offering large discounts to their historical norms. We go over our filtering process to select just five conservative DGI stocks from more than 7,500 companies that are traded on U.S. exchanges, including OTC networks. In addition to the primary list that yields about 3.4%, we present two other groups of five DGI stocks each, with the goal of moderate to high yields.

These stocks have yields between 5.9% and 8.5%.