Fortis Inc. (TSE:FTS) Given Consensus Rating of "Moderate Buy" by Brokerages

Key Points

• Fortis Inc. has received an average rating of "Moderate Buy" from eight analysts, with a 12-month price target of C$70.89.
• The company recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.615 per share, resulting in an annualized dividend yield of 3.6%.
• Fortis operates 10 utility transmission and distribution assets across Canada and the U.S., serving over 3.4 million customers.

Shares of Fortis Inc. (TSE:FTS - Get Free Report) have earned an average rating of "Moderate Buy" from the eight brokerages that are currently covering the firm, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, two have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. The average 12-month price target among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is C$70.89.

FTS has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. National Bankshares increased their target price on Fortis from C$65.00 to C$67.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 5th. Desjardins upgraded shares of Fortis from a "hold" rating to a "moderate buy" rating and lifted their price objective for the company from C$71.00 to C$76.00 in a research note on Tuesday, August 5th. TD Securities boosted their target price on shares of Fortis from C$74.00 to C$77.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 5th. Cibc World Mkts raised shares of Fortis from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Monday, July 21st. Finally, Raymond James Financial boosted their price objective on shares of Fortis from C$69.00 to C$72.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, August 5th.

Fortis Stock Up 0.1%

TSE FTS traded up C$0.04 during trading hours on Friday, hitting C$67.98. The company had a trading volume of 1,333,191 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,619,624. The firm's 50 day moving average is C$68.10 and its 200 day moving average is C$66.36. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 142.31, a current ratio of 0.74 and a quick ratio of 0.36. Fortis has a fifty-two week low of C$57.98 and a fifty-two week high of C$71.02. The company has a market capitalization of C$34.23 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.99, a P/E/G ratio of 3.01 and a beta of 0.38.

Fortis Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 1st. Investors of record on Monday, September 1st were paid a $0.615 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, August 19th. This represents a $2.46 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.6%. Fortis's payout ratio is 71.62%.

Fortis Company Profile

Fortis owns and operates 10 utility transmission and distribution assets in Canada and the United States, serving more than 3.4 million electricity and gas customers. The company has smaller stakes in electricity generation and several Caribbean utilities. ITC operates electric transmission in seven U.S.