Fortis (TSE:FTS) Price Target Raised to C$77.00

Fortis (TSE:FTS) had its price target lifted by BMO Capital Markets from C$74.00 to C$77.00 in a report published on Friday,BayStreet.CA reports. BMO Capital Markets currently has a market perform rating on the stock.

Other equities research analysts have also issued reports about the stock. National Bank Financial increased their target price on shares of Fortis from C$68.00 to C$72.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 17th. Raymond James Financial upped their price target on Fortis from C$72.00 to C$75.50 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, October 24th. TD Securities increased their price target on Fortis from C$77.00 to C$79.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 5th. Scotiabank boosted their price objective on Fortis from C$79.00 to C$80.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Friday. Finally, Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce upped their target price on Fortis from C$75.00 to C$76.00 in a research note on Wednesday, December 17th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have issued a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of C$75.65.

Fortis Trading Up 1.4%

Fortis stock opened at C$77.42 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of C$39.28 billion, a PE ratio of 22.77, a P/E/G ratio of 3.01 and a beta of 0.35. Fortis has a 12 month low of C$60.94 and a 12 month high of C$77.59. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is C$71.89 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is C$70.94. The company has a current ratio of 0.74, a quick ratio of 0.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 142.31.

Fortis (TSE:FTS) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 12th. The company reported C$0.90 earnings per share for the quarter. Fortis had a net margin of 14.53% and a return on equity of 7.48%. The firm had revenue of C$3.08 billion during the quarter. Analysts anticipate that Fortis will post 3.3419913 earnings per share for the current year.

Fortis Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, March 1st. Shareholders of record on Sunday, March 1st will be paid a dividend of $0.64 per share. This represents a $2.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.3%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, February 17th. Fortis’s payout ratio is 73.09%.

Fortis News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Fortis this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q4 earnings beat — Fortis reported C$0.90 EPS and C$3.08B revenue; commentary pointed to strong regulated utility growth and asset expansion. Fortis beats Q4 earnings expectations
• Positive Sentiment: Quarterly dividend declared — C$0.64 per share (annualized yield ~3.3%); ex-dividend date Feb 17, record date Mar 1. Income investors may favor the stock on the payout stability.
• Positive Sentiment: Desjardins raised its target to C$81 and kept a “buy” rating (largest upside among recent raises). BayStreet.CA
• Positive Sentiment: Raymond James raised its target to C$78.50 and kept an “outperform” rating, signaling continued bullish analyst view. BayStreet.CA TickerReport
• Neutral Sentiment: RBC and Scotiabank raised targets to C$80 (both keep “sector perform”) — modest upside but not full upgrades. BayStreet.CA
• Negative Sentiment: BMO lifted its target to C$77 and maintains a “market perform” rating — the target sits slightly below the recent price, implying limited upside/neutral-to-slightly-negative near term. BayStreet.CA

About Fortis

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. states, with more than 16,000 miles of high-voltage transmission lines in operation serving a peak load in excess of 23 gigawatts.