Fortis (NYSE:FTS) Receives $72.00 Average PT from Brokerages

Fortis (NYSE:FTS) has been given a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” by the ten brokerages that are currently covering the company, MarketBeat reports. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and five have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month price target among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $72.00.

Several brokerages have commented on FTS. TD Securities reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Fortis in a research report on Tuesday, February 17th. BMO Capital Markets restated a “market perform” rating on shares of Fortis in a report on Friday, February 13th. Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Fortis in a report on Monday. Wall Street Zen upgraded Fortis from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Sunday, April 19th. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Fortis in a report on Tuesday.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Fortis

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC bought a new stake in Fortis in the 4th quarter worth about $34,000. Towarzystwo Funduszy Inwestycyjnych PZU SA increased its holdings in Fortis by 157.4% in the 3rd quarter. Towarzystwo Funduszy Inwestycyjnych PZU SA now owns 700 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $36,000 after buying an additional 428 shares in the last quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC increased its holdings in Fortis by 123.9% in the 3rd quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 739 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $37,000 after buying an additional 409 shares in the last quarter. LOM Asset Management Ltd bought a new stake in Fortis in the 4th quarter worth about $43,000. Finally, Smartleaf Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in Fortis by 2,119.1% in the 2nd quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 1,043 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $49,000 after buying an additional 996 shares in the last quarter. 57.77% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Fortis Stock Performance

Shares of Fortis stock opened at $56.60 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 0.51, a quick ratio of 0.42 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.28. The firm has a market capitalization of $28.82 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.20, a P/E/G ratio of 4.61 and a beta of 0.47. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $56.80 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $53.57. Fortis has a 12 month low of $45.87 and a 12 month high of $58.78.

Fortis (NYSE:FTS) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 12th. The utilities provider reported $0.65 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.62 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $2.13 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.54 billion. Fortis had a return on equity of 7.24% and a net margin of 14.24%.During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.83 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts forecast that Fortis will post 2.66 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Fortis Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 1st. Investors of record on Friday, May 15th will be issued a $0.64 dividend. This represents a $2.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.5%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 15th. Fortis’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 77.05%.

About Fortis

Fortis Inc is a Canadian diversified electric and gas utility holding company headquartered in St. John’s, Newfoundland and Labrador. Through a portfolio of regulated utility subsidiaries, the company develops, owns and operates electricity and natural gas transmission, distribution and generation assets. Fortis serves customers across multiple jurisdictions in Canada, the United States and the Caribbean, focusing on the delivery of safe, reliable energy to residential, commercial and industrial users.

The company’s core activities include operation and maintenance of transmission and distribution networks, ownership of generation facilities, and investment in grid modernization and system resilience.