We recently published a list of 10 Undervalued Canadian Stocks to Buy Now. In this article, we are going to take a look at where BCE Inc. (NYSE:BCE) stands against other undervalued Canadian stocks to buy now.
Q1 2025 saw some challenges to the financial markets, primarily because of trade issues, says Sun Life (a Canadian-based international financial services company). The US decided to impose extra taxes, known as tariffs, on goods coming from numerous countries, including Canada. This move impacted the investors’ sentiments as to how it might slow down business and economic growth, not only in Canada but globally. The firm noted that Canada’s economy remains strong, and the BoC is no longer concerned with inflation. It lowered the interest rate by 50 bps to 2.75% as an effort to manage the economic impact of US tariffs.
Current State of Canada’s Economy
Canada’s economy strengthened at the end of 2024, says Sun Life, thanks to the lower interest rates. That being said, the markets remain nervous about economic strength. As per the firm, Canada’s economy saw a growth of 2.6%, annualized over Q4 2024. Consumer spending acted as the critical growth driver. Also, reduced interest rates aided in driving consumer spending. The country’s economy also benefited from the stronger exports.
The firm also highlighted that Canada’s unemployment rate sat at 6.6% as of February. BoC decided to reduce rates in part because of the improving labour market. Notably, Canadian equities touched a new high early in the quarter. Talking about the sectors, the Materials and Utilities sectors were tagged as the strongest performers. However, the Health Care and IT sectors saw the weakest returns.
READ ALSO: 7 Best Stocks to Buy For Long-Term and 8 Cheap Jim Cramer Stocks to Invest In.
What’s Next for Canadian Equities?
Bloomberg, while quoting Scotiabank, mentioned that Canada’s stock markets are expected to outperform after avoiding the worst of Trump’s tariffs. Scotia Capital Inc. provided a double upgrade to Canadian equities, from “Underweight” to “Overweight,” with analysts highlighting that both Canada and Mexico have managed to dodge the bullet in the escalating trade war. As per Bloomberg Intelligence analysts Gillian Wolff and Gina Martin Adams, TSX valuations are low relative to pre-pandemic levels, which offer a buffer against economic volatility and trade war.
The analysts at Scotia Capital Inc. believe that the escalating trade war announcement is negative for the US and the rest of the world. Scotiabank has dropped emerging market equities to “Underweight” from “Neutral,” mentioned Bloomberg.
Our Methodology
To list the 10 Undervalued Canadian Stocks to Buy Now, we used a screener to shortlist Canadian companies that trade at a forward P/E of less than ~20.0x. Next, we mentioned hedge fund sentiment around each stock, as of Q4 2024, and ranked them in ascending order of this metric.
Why are we interested in the stocks that hedge funds pile into? The reason is simple: our research has shown that we can outperform the market by imitating the top stock picks of the best hedge funds. Our quarterly newsletter’s strategy selects 14 small-cap and large-cap stocks every quarter and has returned 373.4% since May 2014, beating its benchmark by 218 percentage points (see more details here).
A long-distance telecommunications tower looming large against a dawn sky.
BCE Inc. (NYSE:BCE)
Forward P/E as of April 4: ~11.6x
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 22
BCE Inc. (NYSE:BCE) is a communications company that is engaged in providing wireless, wireline, internet, streaming services, and television (TV) services. The company has its headquarters in Verdun, Canada. National Bank upped the company’s stock to “Outperform” from “Sector Perform.” The firm’s analyst believes that the stock is yet to reflect opportunities to reduce leverage. Furthermore, BCE Inc. (NYSE:BCE) appears to be a relatively safer stock amid Trump-induced market uncertainty, says the firm. Elsewhere, Canaccord Genuity analyst Aravinda Galappatthige maintained a “Hold” rating on the company’s stock.
BCE Inc. (NYSE:BCE) announced that its wholly-owned subsidiary, Bell Canada, entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Ziply Fiber. The transaction improves Bell’s growth profile as well as strategic position by providing it a foothold in the large, underpenetrated U.S. fiber market. Also, the acquisition is expected to increase scale, diversify the operating footprint, and unlock numerous growth opportunities. In 2025, BCE Inc. (NYSE:BCE) is implementing a strategic roadmap, targeting to generate revenue growth while managing costs and capital allocation priorities. It plans to transform its business by leveraging technology, AI, and automation in a bid to modernize operations and realize operational cost efficiencies. The company saw 151,413 total mobile phone and connected device net subscriber activations in Q4 2024.
Overall, BCE ranks 9th on our list of undervalued Canadian stocks to buy now. While we acknowledge the potential of BCE as an investment, our conviction lies in the belief that some deeply undervalued AI stocks hold greater promise for delivering higher returns, and doing so within a shorter time frame. There is an AI stock that went up since the beginning of 2025, while popular AI stocks lost around 25%. If you are looking for a deeply undervalued AI stock that is more promising than BCE but that trades at less than 5 times its earnings, check out our report about this cheapest AI stock.
READ NEXT: 20 Best AI Stocks To Buy Now and 30 Best Stocks to Buy Now According to Billionaires.
Disclosure: None. This article is originally published at Insider Monkey.
