Unigestion Holding SA Sells 24,200 Shares of Fortis Inc. (NYSE:FTS)

Unigestion Holding SA cut its stake in shares of Fortis Inc. (NYSE:FTS - Free Report) by 38.9% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 38,083 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 24,200 shares during the period. Unigestion Holding SA's holdings in Fortis were worth $1,735,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in Fortis during the fourth quarter worth about $1,751,000. US Bancorp DE grew its stake in shares of Fortis by 12.7% in the fourth quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 14,544 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $605,000 after purchasing an additional 1,638 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its holdings in Fortis by 7.4% in the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 533,741 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $22,188,000 after purchasing an additional 36,587 shares during the period. Cetera Investment Advisers raised its position in Fortis by 8.1% during the 4th quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 18,584 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $773,000 after purchasing an additional 1,387 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Barclays PLC grew its position in shares of Fortis by 135.0% in the 4th quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 7,542 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $313,000 after buying an additional 4,332 shares during the last quarter. 57.77% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Fortis Trading Down 1.3%

Shares of FTS traded down $0.61 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $47.49. 452,751 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 611,395. Fortis Inc. has a 1 year low of $38.15 and a 1 year high of $50.06. The company has a quick ratio of 0.63, a current ratio of 0.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.30. The business's 50-day moving average price is $47.62 and its 200-day moving average price is $44.86. The firm has a market capitalization of $23.82 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.12, a PEG ratio of 3.94 and a beta of 0.49.

Fortis (NYSE:FTS - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, May 7th. The utilities provider reported $0.70 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.69 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $2.31 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.42 billion. Fortis had a net margin of 14.12% and a return on equity of 7.09%. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.93 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Fortis Inc. will post 2.35 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

FTS has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on shares of Fortis in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. They set a "hold" rating for the company. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price target on Fortis from $69.00 to $72.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a report on Thursday, May 8th. Finally, Desjardins assumed coverage on shares of Fortis in a research note on Tuesday, May 6th. They set a "hold" rating for the company. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and five have issued a hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $72.00.

About Fortis

Fortis Inc operates as an electric and gas utility company in Canada, the United States, and the Caribbean countries. It generates, transmits, and distributes electricity to approximately 447,000 retail customers in southeastern Arizona; and 103,000 retail customers in Arizona's Mohave and Santa Cruz counties with an aggregate capacity of 3,408 megawatts (MW), including 68 MW of solar capacity and 250 MV of wind capacity.