Fortis (TSE:FTS) Price Target Raised to C$58.50 at BMO Capital Markets

Fortis (TSE:FTS) had its target price hoisted by BMO Capital Markets from C$58.00 to C$58.50 in a research note released on Thursday, BayStreet.CA reports. The firm currently has a market perform rating on the stock.

A number of other research analysts also recently commented on FTS. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on Fortis from C$53.00 to C$50.00 and set an underweight rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 22nd. Bank of America increased their target price on Fortis from C$49.00 to C$50.00 in a research note on Tuesday, January 16th. Scotiabank decreased their price target on shares of Fortis from C$60.00 to C$56.00 and set a sector perform rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 22nd. Raymond James cut their price target on shares of Fortis from C$62.00 to C$59.00 in a report on Thursday, April 25th. Finally, CIBC increased their price objective on shares of Fortis from C$56.00 to C$57.00 and gave the company a neutral rating in a research note on Thursday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Fortis presently has a consensus rating of Hold and an average price target of C$56.88.

Fortis Trading Up 0.4 %

TSE FTS opened at C$54.59 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of C$26.91 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.61, a PEG ratio of 2.80 and a beta of 0.17. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is C$53.19 and its 200-day simple moving average is C$54.16. The company has a current ratio of 0.68, a quick ratio of 0.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 128.76. Fortis has a 52 week low of C$49.82 and a 52 week high of C$62.00.

Fortis (TSE:FTS) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, February 9th. The company reported C$0.72 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of C$0.72. The firm had revenue of C$2.89 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of C$3.22 billion. Fortis had a net margin of 13.66% and a return on equity of 7.41%. Equities research analysts predict that Fortis will post 3.2119367 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Fortis Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, June 1st. Stockholders of record on Saturday, June 1st will be issued a $0.59 dividend. This represents a $2.36 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.32%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 16th. Fortis’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 76.13%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Brian Slocum bought 1,888 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 5th. The stock was bought at an average cost of C$39.18 per share, with a total value of C$73,971.65. In related news, Director Brian Slocum bought 1,888 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 5th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of C$39.18 per share, with a total value of C$73,971.65. Also, Director Margarita Dilley purchased 960 shares of Fortis stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 29th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of C$38.57 per share, with a total value of C$37,027.20. Insiders have acquired a total of 2,851 shares of company stock worth $111,115 over the last quarter. 0.04% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

About Fortis

Fortis Inc operates as an electric and gas utility company in Canada, the United States, and the Caribbean countries. It generates, transmits, and distributes electricity to approximately 447,000 retail customers in southeastern Arizona; and 103,000 retail customers in Arizona's Mohave and Santa Cruz counties with an aggregate capacity of 3,408 megawatts (MW), including 68 MW of solar capacity and 250 MV of wind capacity.