Fortis (TSE:FTS) Reaches New 52-Week High - Still a Buy?

Key Points

• Fortis shares hit a new 52-week high, trading up to C$80.48 and last at C$80.42 on volume of about 175,900 shares.
• Analysts hold a consensus rating of Moderate Buy with an average target of C$77.06 after mixed recent price‑target moves and ratings ranging from Strong Buy to Hold.
• Fortis pays a quarterly dividend of C$0.64 (annualized C$2.56), reflecting a 3.2% yield and a payout ratio around 73%.

Fortis Inc. (TSE:FTS - Get Free Report) shares hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Friday . The stock traded as high as C$80.48 and last traded at C$80.42, with a volume of 175914 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at C$79.30.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

FTS has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Raymond James Financial lifted their price objective on Fortis from C$75.50 to C$78.50 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, February 13th. Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce upped their target price on shares of Fortis from C$75.00 to C$76.00 in a research report on Wednesday, December 17th. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their target price on shares of Fortis from C$72.00 to C$70.00 in a research report on Wednesday, January 28th. Scotiabank upped their price objective on shares of Fortis from C$79.00 to C$80.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Friday, February 13th. Finally, Desjardins upped their price objective on shares of Fortis from C$79.00 to C$81.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, February 13th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have issued a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of C$77.06.

Fortis Stock Performance

The firm has a market cap of C$40.88 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.62, a PEG ratio of 3.01 and a beta of 0.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 145.62, a quick ratio of 0.36 and a current ratio of 0.51. The stock's 50-day moving average is C$77.24 and its 200 day moving average is C$73.41.

Fortis (TSE:FTS - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 12th. The company reported C$0.90 earnings per share for the quarter. The firm had revenue of C$3.08 billion during the quarter. Fortis had a net margin of 14.78% and a return on equity of 7.51%. On average, research analysts predict that Fortis Inc. will post 3.3419913 earnings per share for the current year.

Fortis Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, March 1st. Investors of record on Sunday, March 1st were paid a $0.64 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 17th. This represents a $2.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.2%. Fortis's dividend payout ratio is presently 73.09%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Karen J. Gosse sold 8,412 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, February 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of C$78.18, for a total value of C$657,650.16. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 52,228 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately C$4,083,185.04. This represents a 13.87% decrease in their position. Insiders own 0.04% of the company's stock.

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. states, with more than 16,000 miles of high-voltage transmission lines in operation serving a peak load in excess of 23 gigawatts.

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