Fortis (TSE:FTS) Reaches New 12-Month High - Here's Why

Key Points

• Fortis Inc. shares reached a new 52-week high at C$69.70 during trading and closed at C$68.64, marking a 1.4% increase.
• Analysts have given Fortis a range of ratings, with Royal Bank of Canada raising the target price to C$72.00 and CIBC upgrading the stock to a "strong-buy" rating.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.615, representing an annualized dividend yield of 3.6%, with an ex-dividend date set for August 19th.

Fortis Inc. (TSE:FTS - Get Free Report) reached a new 52-week high on Friday . The stock traded as high as C$69.70 and last traded at C$68.64, with a volume of 717579 shares. The stock had previously closed at C$67.80.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

FTS has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Scotiabank boosted their price objective on Fortis from C$66.00 to C$70.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 8th. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their price objective on Fortis from C$69.00 to C$72.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 8th. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price objective on Fortis from C$67.00 to C$70.00 in a research report on Monday, April 14th. Cibc World Mkts raised Fortis from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Monday, July 21st. Finally, Raymond James Financial raised Fortis from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating, one has issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of C$66.35.

Fortis Stock Performance

The stock has a market cap of C$34.79 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.87, a PEG ratio of 3.01 and a beta of 0.23. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of C$65.50 and a 200 day simple moving average of C$64.80. The company has a current ratio of 0.74, a quick ratio of 0.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 142.31.

Fortis Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 1st will be paid a $0.615 dividend. This represents a $2.46 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.5%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, August 19th. Fortis's dividend payout ratio is currently 73.02%.

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.