Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank Grows Position in Fortis $FTS

Key Points

• Zurcher Kantonalbank raised its stake in Fortis by 40.5% in Q4 to 175,760 shares worth about $9.15 million, and institutional investors now own roughly 57.77% of the company.
• Fortis declared a quarterly dividend of $0.64 per share (annualized $2.56) with an ex-dividend date of May 15 and a yield of about 4.5% (DPR 77.05%).
• Fortis beat EPS estimates in the quarter ($0.65 vs. $0.62) but missed on revenue ($2.13B vs. $2.54B); the stock is trading higher and analysts have a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" with a $72 price target.

Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank lifted its stake in Fortis (NYSE:FTS - Free Report) by 40.5% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 175,760 shares of the utilities provider's stock after buying an additional 50,632 shares during the quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank's holdings in Fortis were worth $9,150,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Miller Howard Investments Inc. NY lifted its holdings in shares of Fortis by 8.4% in the fourth quarter. Miller Howard Investments Inc. NY now owns 22,878 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $1,188,000 after buying an additional 1,777 shares in the last quarter. Lorne Steinberg Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Fortis in the fourth quarter worth $301,000. Ninety One UK Ltd lifted its holdings in shares of Fortis by 34.6% in the fourth quarter. Ninety One UK Ltd now owns 127,809 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $6,654,000 after buying an additional 32,842 shares in the last quarter. LOM Asset Management Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Fortis in the fourth quarter worth $43,000. Finally, Cardinal Capital Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Fortis by 7.0% in the fourth quarter. Cardinal Capital Management Inc. now owns 11,715 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $608,000 after purchasing an additional 770 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 57.77% of the company's stock.

Fortis Trading Up 2.2%

Shares of FTS opened at $56.60 on Friday. Fortis has a 1-year low of $45.87 and a 1-year high of $58.78. The company has a 50-day moving average of $56.80 and a 200 day moving average of $53.57. The firm has a market capitalization of $28.82 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.20, a PEG ratio of 4.61 and a beta of 0.47. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.28, a current ratio of 0.51 and a quick ratio of 0.42.

Fortis (NYSE:FTS - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 12th. The utilities provider reported $0.65 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.62 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $2.13 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.54 billion. Fortis had a return on equity of 7.24% and a net margin of 14.24%.During the same period last year, the business posted $0.83 EPS. On average, research analysts expect that Fortis will post 2.66 EPS for the current year.

Fortis Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.64 per share. This represents a $2.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.5%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 15th. Fortis's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 77.05%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

FTS has been the topic of several research reports. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Fortis in a report on Tuesday. Royal Bank Of Canada reissued a "sector perform" rating on shares of Fortis in a report on Friday, February 13th. TD Securities reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Fortis in a report on Tuesday, February 17th. Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce reissued an "outperform" rating on shares of Fortis in a report on Monday. Finally, Scotiabank restated a "sector perform" rating on shares of Fortis in a report on Friday, February 13th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $72.00.

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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