Fortis $FTS Position Boosted by Guardian Partners Inc.

Guardian Partners Inc. boosted its holdings in Fortis (NYSE:FTS) by 5.1% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 303,951 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 14,792 shares during the period. Fortis makes up 1.4% of Guardian Partners Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 20th largest position. Guardian Partners Inc.’s holdings in Fortis were worth $16,093,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Value Partners Investments Inc. grew its stake in shares of Fortis by 2.0% during the third quarter. Value Partners Investments Inc. now owns 93,512 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $4,954,000 after buying an additional 1,836 shares during the last quarter. Gold Investment Management Ltd. increased its holdings in shares of Fortis by 2.4% in the third quarter. Gold Investment Management Ltd. now owns 84,211 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $4,448,000 after buying an additional 1,959 shares during the period. Baskin Financial Services Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Fortis by 144.8% in the third quarter. Baskin Financial Services Inc. now owns 18,089 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $955,000 after buying an additional 10,700 shares during the period. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Fortis by 0.7% in the third quarter. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. now owns 9,504,530 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $502,562,000 after buying an additional 68,504 shares during the period. Finally, Triasima Portfolio Management inc. lifted its stake in shares of Fortis by 2.1% in the 3rd quarter. Triasima Portfolio Management inc. now owns 268,825 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $14,233,000 after acquiring an additional 5,635 shares during the last quarter. 57.77% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on FTS shares. BMO Capital Markets restated a “market perform” rating on shares of Fortis in a report on Monday, August 3rd. Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce lowered Fortis from an “outperform” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, July 17th. Wolfe Research set a $50.00 price target on Fortis in a research note on Tuesday, August 4th. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their price objective on Fortis from $80.00 to $89.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Monday, August 3rd. Finally, Barclays dropped their price objective on Fortis from $60.00 to $56.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, September 29th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $65.00.

Fortis Price Performance

Shares of Fortis stock opened at $55.98 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $28.88 billion, a PE ratio of 22.15 and a beta of 0.42. Fortis has a 12-month low of $49.60 and a 12-month high of $59.40. The company has a quick ratio of 0.47, a current ratio of 0.56 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.27. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $54.52 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $55.95.

Fortis (NYSE:FTS) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, July 31st. The utilities provider reported $0.56 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.55 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $1.67 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.83 billion. Fortis had a net margin of 14.17% and a return on equity of 7.16%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.76 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts expect that Fortis will post 2.58 EPS for the current year.

Fortis Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 1st. Investors of record on Wednesday, August 19th were paid a C$0.64 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, August 19th. This represents a $2.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.6%. Fortis’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 73.68%.

Fortis Company Profile

Fortis Inc is a Canadian utility holding company that owns and operates regulated electric and natural gas utilities. Its businesses are primarily focused on the transmission and distribution of electricity, natural gas distribution, and related energy infrastructure.

Through its portfolio of utility subsidiaries, Fortis serves customers across Canada and the United States, with additional operations in the Caribbean. Its businesses include electric utilities, natural gas utilities, and electric transmission assets, providing essential energy services to residential, commercial, and industrial customers.

Fortis has expanded from its Canadian utility origins through acquisitions and investments in regulated infrastructure.