10:44 AM EDT, 03/12/2024 (MT Newswires) -- S&P Global Ratings on Monday revised the outlook on BCE (BCE.TO) and its related entities to negative from stable and affirmed all ratings on the company, including its BBB+ issuer credit rating.

"The negative outlook reflects the risk of a downgrade within the next 12-months if we believe the company is unable to deleverage to the 3.25x area by 2026. We anticipate most of the potential deleveraging to occur from corporate actions, which could include noncore asset sales," the rating agency said.

The Canada-based telecom services provider's debt-to-EBITDA ratio weakened to more than 3.5x at year-end 2023, which is beyond the downgrade threshold of 3.25x.

Also, the company plans to reduce leverage by 2026 through noncore assets sales and other corporate initiatives.