Fortis (NYSE:FTS) Upgraded at Wall Street Zen

Fortis (NYSE:FTS) was upgraded by analysts at Wall Street Zen from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note issued to investors on Saturday.

A number of other research firms have also commented on FTS. National Bank Financial reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating on shares of Fortis in a research report on Wednesday, November 5th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Fortis in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. Royal Bank Of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating on shares of Fortis in a report on Friday, February 13th. Scotiabank reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating on shares of Fortis in a research note on Friday, February 13th. Finally, TD Securities reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Fortis in a research report on Tuesday, February 17th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Fortis presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $72.00.

Fortis Trading Up 1.4%

FTS opened at $57.55 on Friday. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $53.59 and its two-hundred day moving average is $51.67. The firm has a market cap of $29.20 billion, a PE ratio of 23.58, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.32 and a beta of 0.50. Fortis has a twelve month low of $43.19 and a twelve month high of $57.93. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.28, a quick ratio of 0.42 and a current ratio of 0.51.

Fortis (NYSE:FTS) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 12th. The utilities provider reported $0.65 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.62 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $2.13 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.54 billion. Fortis had a net margin of 14.24% and a return on equity of 7.24%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.83 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that Fortis will post 2.35 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Fortis

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. West Family Investments Inc. acquired a new position in Fortis during the second quarter valued at approximately $249,000. Aviso Financial Inc. raised its stake in shares of Fortis by 7.0% during the 2nd quarter. Aviso Financial Inc. now owns 101,518 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $4,846,000 after purchasing an additional 6,682 shares in the last quarter. Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Fortis by 42.4% during the 2nd quarter. Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. now owns 794,320 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $37,955,000 after purchasing an additional 236,347 shares in the last quarter. XTX Topco Ltd boosted its holdings in shares of Fortis by 172.5% in the 2nd quarter. XTX Topco Ltd now owns 32,997 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,575,000 after buying an additional 20,889 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Legal & General Group Plc boosted its holdings in shares of Fortis by 5.9% in the 2nd quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 6,224,022 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $296,614,000 after buying an additional 345,633 shares during the last quarter. 57.77% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Fortis Company Profile

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.