The Globe and Mail reports in its Saturday, Feb. 4, edition that Canaccord Genuity analyst Avandida Galappatthige says BCE faces several headwinds in 2017. The Globe's David Leeder writes in the Eye On Equities column that despite posting fourth quarter earnings that met his expectations, Mr. Galappatthige downgraded the stock to "hold" from "buy." Mr. Galappatthige cut his share target to $60 from $64. Analysts on average target the shares at $60.56. Mr. Galappatthige says in a note: "While our target reduction is partly intended to reflect the somewhat softer wireline outlook, we had also not adjusted our target for the recent uptick in interest rates. ... BCE remains the most sensitive stock to yields in the Canadian telecom space." Elsewhere, RBC Dominion Securities analyst Drew McReynolds says BCE is "delivering consistency and predictability." However, he lowered his target by a loonie to $59 with a "sector perform" rating. Mr. McReynolds says, "As we struggle to meaningfully differentiate between large-cap peers within the sector, we see BCE stock performing in line with the average for the group." BMO Nesbitt Burns analyst Tim Casey lowered his target to $60 from $64 with an "outperform" rating.