Magnetar Financial LLC Makes New Investment in Fortis $FTS

Key Points

• Magnetar Financial LLC bought a new stake in Fortis (NYSE:FTS) of 37,268 shares valued at about $1.89 million in the third quarter, and institutional investors now own 57.77% of the company.
• Fortis announced a quarterly dividend of $0.64 per share (annualized $2.56) for a 4.4% yield, with an ex-dividend/record date of May 15 and payment scheduled for June 1.
• Research analysts give Fortis a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" with an average target price of $72.00 (five Buy and five Hold ratings).

Magnetar Financial LLC purchased a new stake in Fortis (NYSE:FTS - Free Report) in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 37,268 shares of the utilities provider's stock, valued at approximately $1,891,000.

Other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. JARISLOWSKY FRASER Ltd boosted 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 during the period. West Family Investments Inc. raised its stake in shares of Fortis by 4.3% in the 3rd quarter. West Family Investments Inc. now owns 5,443 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $276,000 after purchasing an additional 224 shares during the period. Newport Trust Company LLC raised its stake in shares of Fortis by 2.8% in the 3rd quarter. Newport Trust Company LLC now owns 9,734 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $494,000 after purchasing an additional 263 shares during the period. Argonautica Private Wealth Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Fortis by 3.5% in the third quarter. Argonautica Private Wealth Management Inc. now owns 7,895 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $401,000 after purchasing an additional 270 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Compound Planning Inc. boosted its position in shares of Fortis by 6.6% during the third quarter. Compound Planning Inc. now owns 4,536 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $230,000 after buying an additional 281 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 57.77% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on FTS shares. Wall Street Zen raised Fortis from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, February 28th. BMO Capital Markets reiterated a "market perform" rating on shares of Fortis in a report on Friday, February 13th. Royal Bank Of Canada reissued a "sector perform" rating on shares of Fortis in a research report on Friday, February 13th. Weiss Ratings restated a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Fortis in a report on Thursday, January 22nd. Finally, TD Securities reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Fortis in a research report on Tuesday, February 17th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $72.00.

Fortis Price Performance

NYSE:FTS opened at $58.06 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $29.46 billion, a PE ratio of 23.79, a P/E/G ratio of 4.37 and a beta of 0.49. Fortis has a 1-year low of $43.28 and a 1-year high of $58.50. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $54.56 and a 200 day simple moving average of $52.11. The company has a current ratio of 0.51, a quick ratio of 0.42 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.28.

Fortis (NYSE:FTS - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 12th. The utilities provider reported $0.65 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.62 by $0.03. Fortis had a return on equity of 7.24% and a net margin of 14.24%.The company had revenue of $2.13 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.54 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.83 earnings per share. On average, research analysts expect that Fortis will post 2.35 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Fortis Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.64 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 15th. This represents a $2.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.4%. Fortis's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 77.05%.

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.

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