The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company Increases Stock Position in Fortis Inc. (NYSE:FTS)

The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company increased its holdings in shares of Fortis Inc. (NYSE:FTS - Free Report) by 42.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 4,443,333 shares of the utilities provider's stock after purchasing an additional 1,316,394 shares during the period. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company owned 0.89% of Fortis worth $184,878,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Fortis by 724.3% during the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 577 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 507 shares during the period. Golden State Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Fortis in the 4th quarter worth $38,000. Versant Capital Management Inc boosted its holdings in shares of Fortis by 34.1% in the fourth quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 1,006 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $42,000 after acquiring an additional 256 shares in the last quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC increased its stake in shares of Fortis by 38.5% during the fourth quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 2,726 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $113,000 after acquiring an additional 758 shares during the period. Finally, Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB purchased a new position in Fortis during the third quarter worth about $149,000. 57.77% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Fortis Price Performance

Shares of NYSE FTS traded down $0.43 during trading on Friday, hitting $48.55. 695,412 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 625,491. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.30, a current ratio of 0.63 and a quick ratio of 0.63. Fortis Inc. has a 1 year low of $38.15 and a 1 year high of $49.65. The company has a market cap of $24.35 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.57, a PEG ratio of 3.94 and a beta of 0.50. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $45.96 and its 200 day moving average price is $44.17.

Fortis (NYSE:FTS - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Friday, February 14th. The utilities provider reported $0.59 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.57 by $0.02. Fortis had a net margin of 14.12% and a return on equity of 7.09%. The company had revenue of $2.11 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.08 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.72 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Fortis Inc. will post 2.35 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Fortis Cuts Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, June 1st. Investors of record on Friday, May 16th will be issued a dividend of $0.4324 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 16th. This represents a $1.73 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.56%. Fortis's dividend payout ratio is presently 72.03%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on Fortis in a report on Thursday, February 13th. They issued a "hold" rating on the stock. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and three have assigned a hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold".

Fortis Company Profile

Fortis Inc operates as an electric and gas utility company in Canada, the United States, and the Caribbean countries. It generates, transmits, and distributes electricity to approximately 447,000 retail customers in southeastern Arizona; and 103,000 retail customers in Arizona's Mohave and Santa Cruz counties with an aggregate capacity of 3,408 megawatts (MW), including 68 MW of solar capacity and 250 MV of wind capacity.