By Robert Gill
With rich, historic roots dating to the late 1800s, BCE Inc. is now one of the country’s largest companies and boasts a widely held shareholder base, but its shares have recently experienced some turbulence.
So, what exactly are the bears saying?
Three arguments they make are that a regulatory directive late last year to make BCE share its network with competitors is a negative development; higher interest rates make investing in it less appealing; and income-hungry investors are concerned that its impressive dividend yield will be cut.
Let’s take a critical look at these suppositions.
The Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) in November 2023 released a mandate asking BCE and Telus Corp. to provide competitors in Ontario and Quebec access to their network — which they have spent billions of dollars on — at discounted wholesale…
