Faster networks help BCE compete

Article Excerpt

BCE INC. $59 (Toronto symbol BCE; Conservative Growth and Income Portfolios, Utilities sector; Shares outstanding: 898.2 million; Market cap: $53.0 billion; Price-to-sales ratio: 2.3; Dividend yield: 5.4%; TSINetwork Rating: Above Average; www.bce.ca) continues to improve the speed and reliability of its wireless and high-speed Internet networks. In 2018, those costs amounted to $3.97 billion, or 16.9% of its revenue. Capital spending will probably total 16.5% of BCE’s 2019 revenue. Thanks to those investments, the company signed 447,682 wireless customers to long-term contracts (net of cancellations) in 2018. That’s a gain of 7.4% over 2017. It also added 110,790 customers for its Fibe TV business (up 2.9%) and 107,839 customers for its high-speed Internet service (up 22.7%). BCE trades at just 16.7 times its likely 2019 earnings of $3.53 a share. The $3.17 dividend yields a high 5.4%. BCE is buy. buy…