Post by
Dibah420 on May 05, 2023 12:44pm
$90.58! ???
May 4, 2023 | 18:48 ET~
BCE BCE-TSX BCE-NYSE Rating Outperform Price: May-4 $64.44 Target ↑ $67.00 Total Rtn 10%
Q1 Mixed Bottom Line: Q1 revenue was slightly above expectations and EBITDA was slightly below. EPS was $0.85 vs. Street $0.77. Wireless net adds were roughly in line and loading should remain encouraging given immigration trends. We expect cost pressures at BCE will ease though 2023. Enterprise sales should improve as supply chains ease. BCE signed a partnership with Aeroplan which could improve loading in some market segments. BCE announced a small acquisition (FX Innovation) to expand its cloud strategy. FY2023 guidance was reaffirmed. We increase our target price to $67 (from $64). Key Points Targeting increased wireless availability as 5G coverage continues to expand. BCE had +43k postpaid and -17k prepaid phone net adds (consensus +40k postpaid and -8k prepaid), +1% ARPU, and marginally higher churn. BCE partnered with Air Canada/ Aeroplan to offer in-flight services to Aeroplan members and better position the Bell brands for new Canadians. There continues to be wireless tailwinds from immigration, enterprise demand, device penetration and 5G momentum. Roaming was strong in the quarter and is tracking at 129% of prepandemic levels but its impact will slow through 2023. BCE’s 5G+ network now covers ~40% of the addressable population and is expected to grow to 46% by FYE (71% of addressable population). Fibre build provides loading strength. Wireline subscriber metrics were largely in line with expectations. Fibre internet loading was +48k, slightly offset by -20k DSL losses. BCE now has ~2.5mm fibre subscribers (~57% of retail base). Consumer internet revenue grew 10%. The company is on pace to build ~650k fibre HH this year. IoT and cloud service enhancements. BCE announced a small acquisition ($160m)—FX Innovation—which should enhance its cloud and workflow automation capabilities. The acquisition is expected to close by early Q3/23. Additionally, the company expanded its enterprise cloud security partnership with Palo Alto Networks. Media results expected to improve sequentially. Revenue increased 3% and EBITDA decreased -6% (excluding +$67mm one-time item in Q1/22), albeit in line with consensus. Digital revenues increased 2%, while subscriber revenues decreased 4%. Advertising softness is expected to moderate and gradually improve through 2H/23. Forecasts. We adjusted our 2023 forecasts to reflect Q1 results. We expect cost pressures will ease through the year. No change to our 2024 estimates. 2023 guidance was reaffirmed. Target to $67 (from $64) based on lower long-term interest rates. Key Changes Target $67.00↑ $64.00 Estimates Q2 / 23E 2023E 202
Comment by
TimeBuilder on May 06, 2023 1:58pm
Noted: that TD DID NOT edit the data transfer from BMO Cap ;>( Live & Learn daily @ our OLD age... Thank You Dibah420 for keeping everyone honest.... Regards TimeBuilder