Bank of America Corp DE Invests $120.23 Million in Fortis $FTS

Key Points

• Bank of America acquired 2.1 million Fortis shares worth approximately $120.2 million in the second quarter, giving it a 0.41% stake. Institutional investors collectively own 57.77% of Fortis.
• Fortis reported quarterly EPS of $0.56, slightly exceeding estimates, while revenue of $1.67 billion fell short of the $1.83 billion consensus forecast.
• Fortis maintains a quarterly dividend of $0.64 per share, equivalent to a 4.7% yield. Analysts hold a consensus “Hold” rating, with an average price target of $66.33.

Bank of America Corp DE bought a new stake in Fortis (NYSE:FTS - Free Report) in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor bought 2,100,898 shares of the utilities provider's stock, valued at approximately $120,234,000. Bank of America Corp DE owned approximately 0.41% of Fortis as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in FTS. Addison Capital Co lifted its position in Fortis by 0.9% in the 1st quarter. Addison Capital Co now owns 32,797 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $1,830,000 after acquiring an additional 289 shares in the last quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. boosted its position in Fortis by 10.9% during the 1st quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 3,121 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $174,000 after acquiring an additional 308 shares during the last quarter. J. Safra Sarasin Holding AG raised its holdings in shares of Fortis by 4.8% in the first quarter. J. Safra Sarasin Holding AG now owns 7,110 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $395,000 after purchasing an additional 326 shares during the last quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Fortis by 13.1% in the first quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 2,826 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $158,000 after purchasing an additional 327 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Versant Capital Management Inc lifted its position in shares of Fortis by 3.3% in the second quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 10,957 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $627,000 after purchasing an additional 348 shares in the last quarter. 57.77% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Fortis Stock Down 0.7%

Shares of NYSE FTS opened at $54.10 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $27.79 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.90 and a beta of 0.42. The company has a current ratio of 0.56, a quick ratio of 0.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.27. Fortis has a 12 month low of $48.90 and a 12 month high of $59.40. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $56.19 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $56.45.

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, beating the consensus estimate of $0.55 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $1.67 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.83 billion. Fortis had a net margin of 14.17% and a return on equity of 7.16%. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.76 EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that Fortis will post 2.58 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Fortis Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 1st. Investors of record on Wednesday, August 19th were given a dividend of $0.64 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, August 19th. This represents a $2.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.7%. Fortis's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 73.68%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. Scotiabank restated a "sector perform" rating on shares of Fortis in a research note on Tuesday, August 4th. Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce downgraded Fortis from an "outperform" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, July 17th. TD Securities reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of Fortis in a research note on Tuesday, August 4th. Weiss Ratings reissued a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Fortis in a research note on Friday, July 17th. Finally, Wolfe Research set a $50.00 target price on shares of Fortis in a report on Tuesday, August 4th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Fortis presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $66.33.

Fortis Company Profile

Fortis Inc is a Canadian investor-owned utility company headquartered in St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador. Through its regulated utility subsidiaries, the company provides electricity and natural gas services to residential, commercial and industrial customers.

Fortis operates electric transmission and distribution networks, natural gas distribution systems, and power generation assets. Its businesses include FortisBC in British Columbia, Newfoundland Power and Maritime Electric in Atlantic Canada, as well as utilities in the United States, including Central Hudson, UNS Energy and ITC.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding FTS? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Fortis (NYSE:FTS - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.