Fortis (TSE:FTS) Share Price Crosses Above 200-Day Moving Average - Here's Why

Key Points

• Fortis Inc. shares crossed above their 200-day moving average, reaching a recent high of C$69.70, and last traded at C$68.79.
• Recent analyst reports have generally upgraded Fortis's ratings, with price targets raised by CIBC, Jefferies Financial Group, and Scotiabank.
• Fortis declared a quarterly dividend of $0.615 per share, indicating an annualized payout of $2.46 and a yield of 3.6%.

Fortis Inc. (TSE:FTS - Get Free Report) passed above its 200-day moving average during trading on Friday . The stock has a 200-day moving average of C$64.67 and traded as high as C$69.70. Fortis shares last traded at C$68.79, with a volume of 2,011,986 shares trading hands.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages recently commented on FTS. Cibc World Mkts raised shares of Fortis from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Monday, July 21st. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their price objective on shares of Fortis from C$69.00 to C$72.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 8th. Desjardins raised shares of Fortis from a "hold" rating to a "moderate buy" rating and raised their price target for the stock from C$71.00 to C$76.00 in a research note on Tuesday. Scotiabank raised their price target on shares of Fortis from C$66.00 to C$70.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 8th. Finally, TD Securities raised their price target on shares of Fortis from C$74.00 to C$77.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating, two have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of C$68.82.

Fortis Price Performance

The company's 50-day moving average is C$65.54 and its 200-day moving average is C$64.84. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 142.31, a current ratio of 0.74 and a quick ratio of 0.36. The firm has a market capitalization of C$34.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.57, a PEG ratio of 3.01 and a beta of 0.23.

Fortis Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 1st. Investors of record on Monday, September 1st will be given a $0.615 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, August 19th. This represents a $2.46 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.6%. Fortis's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 73.02%.

About Fortis

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.