Fortis (TSE:FTS) Hits New 52-Week High Following Dividend Announcement

Fortis Inc. (TSE:FTS)’s stock price hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Wednesday following a dividend announcement from the company. The stock traded as high as C$70.89 and last traded at C$70.75, with a volume of 640597 shares. The stock had previously closed at C$69.66.

The newly announced dividend which will be paid on Monday, September 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 1st will be paid a dividend of $0.615 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, August 19th. This represents a $2.46 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.5%. Fortis’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 73.02%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have recently weighed in on FTS shares. TD Securities raised their target price on Fortis from C$74.00 to C$77.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 5th. Cibc World Mkts upgraded Fortis from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, July 21st. Raymond James Financial raised their target price on Fortis from C$69.00 to C$72.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 5th. CIBC raised their target price on Fortis from C$68.00 to C$69.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada raised their target price on Fortis from C$69.00 to C$72.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 8th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have assigned a Buy rating, five have issued a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of C$68.82.

Fortis Price Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of C$34.89 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.93, a P/E/G ratio of 3.01 and a beta of 0.23. The company has a quick ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 0.74 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 142.31. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of C$66.43 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of C$65.46.

Fortis Company Profile

Fortis owns and operates 10 utility transmission and distribution assets in Canada and the United States, serving more than 3.4 million electricity and gas customers. The company has smaller stakes in electricity generation and several Caribbean utilities. ITC operates electric transmission in seven U.S.