Canada Pension Plan Investment Board Takes $177.66 Million Position in Fortis $FTS

Canada Pension Plan Investment Board purchased a new stake in shares of Fortis (NYSE:FTS) in the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 3,104,158 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $177,656,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of FTS. Trust Co. of Vermont purchased a new position in Fortis in the second quarter worth $26,000. Scarborough Advisors LLC bought a new position in Fortis in the 1st quarter valued at $29,000. Aberdeen Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Fortis during the 2nd quarter valued at $31,000. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Fortis during the 4th quarter valued at $34,000. Finally, Towarzystwo Funduszy Inwestycyjnych PZU SA raised its stake in shares of Fortis by 157.4% during the 3rd quarter. Towarzystwo Funduszy Inwestycyjnych PZU SA now owns 700 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 428 shares during the period. 57.77% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on FTS. TD Securities reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Fortis in a report on Tuesday, August 4th. Scotiabank reissued a “sector perform” rating on shares of Fortis in a research report on Tuesday, August 4th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Fortis in a report on Friday, July 17th. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their price objective on Fortis from $80.00 to $89.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Monday, August 3rd. Finally, Barclays reduced their price objective on Fortis from $61.00 to $60.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, August 3rd. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Fortis presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $66.33.

Fortis Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:FTS opened at $55.33 on Thursday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $57.02 and a 200 day moving average of $56.62. The company has a current ratio of 0.56, a quick ratio of 0.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.27. The stock has a market cap of $28.27 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.40 and a beta of 0.43. Fortis has a 12 month low of $48.64 and a 12 month high of $59.40.

Fortis (NYSE:FTS) last posted its earnings results on Friday, July 31st. The utilities provider reported $0.56 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.55 by $0.01. Fortis had a net margin of 14.17% and a return on equity of 7.16%. The business had revenue of $1.67 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.83 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.76 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Fortis will post 2.56 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Fortis Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 1st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, August 19th will be issued a $0.64 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, August 19th. This represents a $2.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.6%. Fortis’s dividend payout ratio is presently 73.68%.

Fortis 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.