Wall Street Zen Upgrades Fortis (NYSE:FTS) to Hold

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

A number of other research analysts have also weighed in on FTS. Royal Bank Of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating on shares of Fortis in a report on Friday, February 13th. BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed a “market perform” rating on shares of Fortis in a research report on Friday, February 13th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Fortis in a report on Thursday, January 22nd. Scotiabank reissued a “sector perform” rating on shares of Fortis in a research report on Friday, February 13th. Finally, TD Securities restated a “buy” rating on shares of Fortis in a research note on Tuesday, February 17th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $72.00.

Fortis Trading Up 1.4%

Shares of NYSE:FTS opened at $57.55 on Friday. Fortis has a 52-week low of $43.19 and a 52-week 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. The company has a market capitalization of $29.20 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.58, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.32 and a beta of 0.50. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $53.59 and a 200 day simple moving average of $51.67.

Fortis (NYSE:FTS) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 12th. The utilities provider reported $0.65 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.62 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $2.13 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.54 billion. Fortis had a return on equity of 7.24% and a net margin of 14.24%.During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.83 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts forecast that Fortis will post 2.35 earnings per share for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Fortis

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. JARISLOWSKY FRASER Ltd raised its stake in Fortis by 1.7% in the 3rd quarter. JARISLOWSKY FRASER Ltd now owns 13,325 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $676,000 after purchasing an additional 220 shares in the last quarter. West Family Investments Inc. grew its position in shares of Fortis by 4.3% during the 3rd quarter. West Family Investments Inc. now owns 5,443 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $276,000 after purchasing an additional 224 shares in the last quarter. Newport Trust Company LLC increased its holdings in shares of Fortis by 2.8% during the third quarter. Newport Trust Company LLC now owns 9,734 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $494,000 after purchasing an additional 263 shares during the period. Argonautica Private Wealth Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Fortis by 3.5% during the third quarter. Argonautica Private Wealth Management Inc. now owns 7,895 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $401,000 after purchasing an additional 270 shares during the period. Finally, Compound Planning Inc. raised its position in shares of Fortis by 6.6% in the third quarter. Compound Planning Inc. now owns 4,536 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $230,000 after buying an additional 281 shares in the last quarter. 57.77% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Fortis

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.