1,947,424 Shares in Fortis $FTS Bought by BlackRock Inc.

Key Points

• BlackRock acquired 1,947,424 Fortis shares in the second quarter, valued at approximately $111.5 million and representing about 0.38% of the utility company. Institutional investors collectively own 57.77% of Fortis.
• Fortis exceeded quarterly EPS expectations, reporting $0.56 versus the $0.55 consensus, although revenue of $1.67 billion fell short of the $1.83 billion estimate. Analysts expect full-year EPS of $2.56.
• Fortis declared a quarterly dividend of $0.64, equal to $2.56 annually and a 4.7% yield. Analyst sentiment remains mixed, with an overall “Hold” rating and an average price target of $66.33.

BlackRock Inc. purchased a new stake in Fortis (NYSE:FTS - Free Report) during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 1,947,424 shares of the utilities provider's stock, valued at approximately $111,451,000. BlackRock Inc. owned approximately 0.38% of Fortis as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Addison Capital Co lifted its position in shares of Fortis by 0.9% in the 1st quarter. Addison Capital Co now owns 32,797 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $1,830,000 after purchasing an additional 289 shares during the period. Public Sector Pension Investment Board increased its position in shares of Fortis by 0.6% during the second quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 48,548 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $2,313,000 after buying an additional 300 shares during the period. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. raised its stake in Fortis by 10.9% in the first quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 3,121 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $174,000 after buying an additional 308 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its stake in Fortis by 0.8% in the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 37,822 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $1,969,000 after buying an additional 316 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Royal London Asset Management Ltd. lifted its holdings in Fortis by 0.9% in the second quarter. Royal London Asset Management Ltd. now owns 34,938 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $1,668,000 after buying an additional 325 shares during the period. 57.77% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Fortis Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:FTS opened at $54.69 on Friday. Fortis has a 1-year low of $48.64 and a 1-year high of $59.40. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.27, a current ratio of 0.56 and a quick ratio of 0.47. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $56.97 and a 200-day moving average price of $56.61. The company has a market capitalization of $27.94 billion, a PE ratio of 22.14 and a beta of 0.43.

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

Fortis Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 1st. Shareholders 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 yield of 4.7%. Fortis's payout ratio is 73.68%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have recently commented on the company. Scotiabank restated a "sector perform" rating on shares of Fortis in a research note on Tuesday, August 4th. Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce lowered Fortis from an "outperform" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, July 17th. Wolfe Research set a $50.00 target price on shares of Fortis in a research report on Tuesday, August 4th. TD Securities reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Fortis in a research report on Tuesday, August 4th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their price objective on shares of Fortis from $80.00 to $89.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Monday, August 3rd. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Fortis presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $66.33.

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.

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